Gundam 00 Season 1 Drabble Anthology
by College Fool
Summary: First started on Oct. 12, 2007, this series of episodic oneshots was one of the first 00 fics on the web. Come enjoy a wide range of styles, each written within a week of the episode it shadows. AU, abstract, and speculation, oh my! Now complete as is.
1. Report

The first of the episodic drabbles I wrote for 00 as it was first showing in Japan. Written within the first week and posted on the MAHQ forum on October 12, 2007, that made this one of, if not the, first English-language Gundam 00 fanfics on the web. Each ficlit was written without prior knowledge of the next episode, and each was a different writing experiment for me, so expect type and quality to vary greatly.

--

Episode 1: Report

"Graham Acre, reporting as ordered." Cut and paste formality. A pause for the command "At Ease" to be given, and then the audible shifting of weight into a more casual but still professional position. "How can I help you, sir?"

"You can start, Graham, by explaining exactly _why_ you were at a high level demonstration of the AEU's new mobile suit without permission. I don't know which strings you pulled to get in, but you created a number of problems over here." The military liaison for the Union mission in this part of the AEU, despite his other qualification, was a stickler for observing red tape. Whether he was a natural bureaucrat or just hated the hassle of dealing with the unexpected was something Graham could never decide on.

"I wanted to see the AEU's new mobile suit, to see if it was as good as they've been selling it. You and I both know that they were only able to make it with our help, so getting a professional pilot's opinion makes sense. I can show you the paperwork…"

Regardless of what other failings he had, the Liaison could smell an evasion, as well as recognize when he was about to be sold a bill of goods. Which was a good call; Graham's companion at the exhibition was a master at arranging paperwork, both legitimate and not. Gruffly, the Liaison went on. "Never mind that. I wanted to talk to you about the report you submitted, both on the Enact and the Gundams."

Graham nodded, even as he looked at a copy of the exact same report. Another thing about the Liaison; he was always prepared. "The Enact looks to be a respectable machine. It looks to be a bit faster, a bit more agile than our Flag, but the weapon layout is so close they may as well be the same. One on one, they don't have an overwhelming advantage against us, should things come to that. Their biggest advantage is the solar power system for better range, not armor or weapons."

The Liaison didn't nod or shake his head; Graham suspected that he may have been involved in whatever exchange took place between the Union and the AEU, or at least in military intelligence. Instead, the officer narrowed his eyes and said "At least you remember that despite cooperation, we are still the AEU's competitor, not ally. I had to reassure some people about that, or else you would be in deeper trouble than talking to me." That hurt, even if Graham didn't show it. He was hardly an agent of any foreign power, though mobile suit pilots were greater intelligence gold mines than most due to their intense knowledge of both their mobile suits and technology. He also prided himself on his understanding of world politics.

The Liaison continued. "I want your personal thoughts on this Celestial Being organization, or rather the gundams they control. I'm told that your initial report was forwarded up to the very top, and I mean the top, of both Washington and Brussels after the assault on the Human Reform League's elevator. I've also been told that they were glad to have any information prior to the Celestial Being's announcement."

Technically, the Liaison had committed a faux pas. Technically, the Union of Solar Energy and Free Nations was an equal alliance of nations, with the main organizational activities taking place in Washington at the invitation of the United States of America. And technically, the Advanced European Union itself was merely the European Union (capital Brussels) taking a leading position of guidance over smaller states in Africa and Central Asia. And technically, both were correct. The Union had grown to eclipse the individual American states of old, including the United States of America, and form a more or 

less politically unified state, and the AEU was very active in diplomacy in competition with the Human Reform League in regards to the remaining unaligned states of Central Asia and elsewhere. But both Patrick and the Liaison were politically realists; if one wanted to find the true centers of power in the western world, they were in Washington and Brussels respectively. They both automatically looked over a mistake that politicians would apologize profusely for.

Graham paused, organizing his thoughts. "I don't know what you want me to say that I didn't include in the report. I only personally saw one of the gundams, remember, and when it went flew off for the aerial battle, I couldn't see it. I only say the aerial battle through binoculars; if you want better, you'd need the AEU's battle data."

The Liaison nodded. Once settled down to business, he was easy enough to get along with. "I want your general opinion. No one has seen hide or hair of them since their last announcement, but they obviously intend to act again. When they do, we want to be as prepared as can be."

Graham considered, and then spoke. "I hate to admit it, but they already outclass what we have now in almost every degree. The sword mobile suit was able to disable all of its targets with a single swing; I saw some Helions go out of control out of the battle after a single blow, and the Enact was butchered in front of us all. It was also fast enough to dodge a point blank linear rifle shot from the Enact; I don't know how strong the armor is, but the Helions' machine gun assaults didn't shoot it down."

The Liaison waved him to continue with his left hand, jotting notes with his other.

"The two biggest aspects are its flight and the communication jamming that surrounded it. When it was near us, and I'm told when another was near the space elevator, all communications were cut off. I don't know if is avoidable, but if it isn't team coordination is going to suffer when people can't talk, or even shoot remote control missiles. As for the flight…"

Graham trailed off. How to explain something he didn't understand? Honesty seemed the only approach. "It wasn't like anything I'd ever seen. I didn't see or hear any rocket or jet engines turning when it lifted smoothly, I just saw strange particles of light. I've never seen any mobile suit take off so gently in such a manner, or move so quickly from a still position. Whatever moves those mobile suits, I've never used it. That's all I can say."

The Liaison nodded once again, though more to himself than to Graham. "Thank you. It's not much, but it's what we have now. I'll look into getting you the data from the AEU; anything that can take out the Enact is certainly a threat to our Union Flags. Until then, I suppose I should tell you to do what you're supposed to be doing, and not to go gallivanting across foreign nations without permission. Any questions?"

Graham internally grinned. A chance to try and grill a superior for info was a rare treat. "Yes sir. Have we learned anything else about Celestial Being? I looked at our intelligence database, but found nothing."

The Liaison snorted at the idea of military intelligence. "And nor should you have. As far as anyone can tell, they've never existed on Earth up to this point. I know we've been looking under every corporate and foreign hiding rock we can, and you can bet your bottom dollar that the AEU and HRL are 

as well, but no one's heard so much as a peep. No corporate groups, no private groups, no terrorist groups, nothing. As it is, we'll just have to wait for their next move before we can figure them out. And so," he pointedly looked at his watch; this Graham's further questions would have to wait. "We look to the future."

"We look to the future," Graham repeated. The future, the mysterious sword "gundam", the paradoxical Celestial Being…

"I can hardly wait."


	2. Fangirls

This was the drabble for episode two, written before episode three came out. You can spot the anachronism at the mention of the plasma blade, which couldn't have happened after the first thirty seconds of episode three.

For some background, at the time there was a lot of speculation/joking of how the series would be a yaoi paradise like Gundam Wing, and after watching a (notoriously bad and unreliable) sub I got the inspiration to make this. I have yet to reuse the concept, but it's in there... somewhere... maybe next season.

Oh, and I'm updating roughly bi-daily just to stretch it out, as opposed to posting all the chapters at once. No other reason.

--

00 Episode 2 Drabble

Fangirls

or

_How Bad Can A Good Yaoi Joke Get?_

As the four Gundam Meisters left their Gundams and slowly approached the prefabricated shelter that would be their home for the next few precious hours, most of them did so quietly. Tiera, mysterious pilot of the Virtue, would on talk when addressed. Allelujah, the tall and thoughtful pilot of the Kyrios, was contemplating Celestial Being's first deadly battle against a foe waiting to engage them. Lockon, sniper extraordinaire of the Gundam Dynames and leader of the Meisters, had been trying to strike up a conversation for the last few minutes, but his efforts had failed in the face of his three unresponsive subordinates.

_And beautiful. Definitely a beautiful team of boys! I mean, have you seen Tiera? Any guy who wears pink has major hotness potential… _

Third and youngest subordinate among the Meisters was Setsuna, pilot of the multi-bladed Gundam Exia. He was possibly the quietest of them all. Not that this was much of a surprise to his comrades; Setsuna was naturally a quiet young man not given to idle chatter, but today there was a different reason from usual as to his reserve. He had had his first real battle against enemies prepared to kill him. He had had to carry out his mission to oppose both sides of the conflict for the first time. And afterwords, he had had to duel with a particularly skilled opponent in a Union Flag, one whom he hadn't killed and had only beaten back after some trouble.

_Oooh, oooh! Isn't Setsuna so dreamy? He has such awesome hair! And he's so quiet and stoic, like Heero! Oh, I wish I could hold him and make him forget his tragic past. :(_

But what was on the front of Setsuna's mind was his foe's opening words, words that kept repeating over and over. "Nice to meet you… Gundam! I am Graham Acre; you captivated my heart!" In one sense, it was clear that this Graham (had he heard the name elsewhere before?) was talking about interest in the Gundam, but then again just earlier Setsuna had called **himself** "Gundam," which would mean that this Graham **was** talking about him, which was rather awkward…

_Aw, Setsuna's all flustered over Graham's declaration of lo-ove. Isn't that adorable? Clearly, this series is going to see the hero and his rival fall in love. It's as clear as with Kira and Athrun, even if these two aren't long-lost friends. It's obvious!_

Why did that guy have to have such a bad dialect? Now he'd be dwelling on this until he went to sleep. Hopefully it would be gone by the morning. Besides, it's not like the Gundam Meisters weren't warned that something like this might happen. Eventually, the superpowers would recognize the Gundams and would organize a prepared opposition to them. But this only Celestial Being's second appearance; how could someone have already become fixated on him and the Exia? Wouldn't that require some sort of obsessive fanatic to be connected to the Exia and himself so quickly? Maybe not, but it was still better than the alternative they were warned about. Eventually, Captain Sumeragi had warned, they might create their own following of support, including fangirls. It wasn't so much that he cared about girls one way or another, but the last thing he wanted would be to have some obsessive stalker girl. That would just be annoying.

_That's right! Girls bad, boys good! Don't be distracted by any Relena-floozies! _

Setsuna blinked. That had **not** been a usual thought for him. What the heck was a Relena-floozy?

_That's right, beautiful! I'm here to make you find true happiness in the arms of a Y-chromosome!_

Setsuna blinked again, though no one noticed. Obviously, Graham's comment was affecting him more than he thought. A good organizing of his thoughts after the preliminary briefing for the next mission was definitely called for. He bowed his head as he walked through the door into the prefabricated building, right behind Tiera _who has such a nice butt in that flight suit, you should reach out and grab it and_

Setsuna shook his head, throwing the errant thought out of his head. Tiera was a teammate, someone to be respected and not molested! Allelujah saw the motion and moved closer to Setsuna, speaking with a soft voice so Tiera and Lockon wouldn't necessarily overhear.

"Are you alright, Setsuna_-san, you forgot the –san!_? Did something happen in your first battle?" A note of quite concern, _our first proof of a Setsuna-Allelujah couple! Allelujah was the one to notice; he must be constantly watching Setsuna, and was concerned at the slightest sign of a problem!_

"I'm fine, Allelujah_-san!_ . Just an errant thought."

"Very well. If there is no problem, forgive my intrusion." Allelujah stepped away; one reason Setsuna thought favorably of his fellow Meisters was that each of them was willing to give him his space. The two entered the room where Captain Sumeragi would speak to them via a telescreen; Lockon and Tiera had entered ahead of them.

_After all, Allelujah was trying to get Setsuna alone with just the two of them!_ _Squee!_

Lockon looked around the room, obviously counting them all. _Accounting for his harem, no doubt._ "Good, we're all here. Let's start and" _have a hot steamy scene? _"get this pre-briefing over, so I can finally get call it a day. I don't know about you all, but I want to get out of this suit and go to bed."

_So do I, Lockon-chan, so do I. And I even know some very demanding partner stretches._

Setsuna's iron self control was what kept him from reacting as the Voice got more suggestive. Sumeragi's image appeared on the screen, holding her infamous zero-g beer bottle, drops of liquid flying around in the Ptolemy. Setsuna leaned forward, intending to ignore the strange thoughts by focusing on _that drunken, skanky_ Sumeragi's presentation.

"This," she began, "is the target base. It's a reasonably heavily defended base; enough to notably maul any force that attacks it, and enough to give the Human Reform League firm and unyielding control over the area. It has a number of mobile suits, from regular Tierens to some reports of more advanced models. All in all, nothing you Meisters can't handle, but we don't want to be over confident either. That is why," Sumeragi pressed a button out of view, and a five arrows appeared on the map, "we are going do this carefully. We already showed the world how strong we are during our last operation; the three powers will be more and more prepared as our mission progresses." Setsuna watched attentively; this presentation was _boring!_ a good distraction from the Voice, who was apparently uninterested. Maybe it would just go away.

_Not likely!_

"As you can see," Sumeragi continued, "the basic idea is overwhelming force from all directions." _I bet you would like overwhelming force from all directions_, _you Misato wannabe_ the Voice said spitefully. "As usual, Setsuna will be in first, to take the enemy's main mobile suit force. Lockon, you and the Dynames will wait until Setsuna needs you, in case he gets in a sticky situation." Setsuna held back a shudder, the Voice seemed to _leer…_

"Setsuna, don't try and take to many men at once. Lockon will be ready for you if you get too many guns pointed in your direction; it looks like the enemy forces are getting used to your sword, and are staying at arm's length."

_That's right, Setsuna. Big strong Lockon will __always__ be ready for you, he's so reliable…_

Setsuna coughed in shock. That Graham person was bad enough; he was not going to start thinking of Lockon as anything other than a reliable ally. Lockon was dependable, hard as a rock. He gave you whatever space he felt you needed, was mature enough to not make childish mistakes, and was always willing to lend a hand when needed. He'd do anything for his friends, and fight any foe. Someone to be respected, not, not drooled over!

_Ah, but those are all great reasons he would work with you! You, the young boy in a dangerous world, him the solid guide to protect and lead you. It's perfect! And you're both so hot, it's even better!_

Setsuna winced at that, which just drew more attention to him. Sumeragi looked up from her notes. "Setsuna, are you alright? If you're tired, you can go now. We've covered your duties, and you can just refresh on everyone else's tomorrow morning at the final briefing."

Now everyone was looking at him. Lockon was probably thinking something about how Setsuna was shaken up by the first battle, Allelujah was probably remembering their 'talk' before entering the base, and Tiera… no one could tell what Tiera was thinking at any time.

"No, I'm fine" Setsuna said. After a moment, Sumeragi looked back at her notes, plainly not going to make an issue of it. The Meisters in the room, though, looked at him for just a bit longer.

Sumeragi looked towards Allelujah. "Allelujah, you and the Kyrios are going to sneak around the back for a deep penetration raid with the missile bombardment mission pack. You are to attack their rear, as fast and hard as you can. Remember, in and out as fast as you can is the key _yeah girl!_ ; you're going to find yourself surrounded by the enemy's protection if you're too slow, and we don't want you swamped by their men.

_I take it back, I __like__ how Sumeragi thinks!_

"Tiera, once again you and Virtue are going to go after the enemy's heavy artillery. This is where their biggest guns are; I want you to take Virtue for a flanking attack here and wipe them out. We expect them to thrust this way once the base realizes it's under attack; time it right and you can take most of them by surprise. Penetrate the holes in the enemy defense from Setsuna and Allelujah's simultaneous attacks and beat them away from reinforcing the base."

_Off. She meant beat them off, Setsuna, so the bad big men wouldn't overpower you. Oh, is poor little Setsuna too innocent to know what goes through a girl's mind? Hehe!_

Setsuna coughed again, this time fighting the beginnings of a blush he could _feel_ rising as he bent forward to hide it…

_That's right! Bend over, pretty boy! More! More!_

"Setsuna…?" Sumeragi had a faint look of concern on her face. A Gundam Meister suffering problems was a BAD thing to have. She would have to check on that…

"I'm sorry. I must need rest more than I thought. May I go?" Still fighting the blush down, just barely.

"Get a good night rest." Setsuna rose, but Sumeragi had one more thing to say. "Setsuna, make sure to clean your personal firearm before tomorrow. You never know when you might end up using it, and you don't want it to fail on you because you forgot to oil your gun. Understand?"

_Yeah baby yeah!_

"Yes Captain," Setsuna said stiffly. As he turned, Sumeragi thought she saw a bit of pink on his cheeks, but put it down to her imagination. Everyone knew that Setsuna was as solid as a rock; nothing ever seemed to affect him. Instead, she looked back at the remaining Meisters, but a silence fell among them.

"I suppose one of us should check him out, see if there's anything wrong with him." said Allelujah, breaking the silence. Sumeragi nodded, and the Voice no one else heard agreed.

"I'll do it," volunteered Lockon. "His room is beside mine anyway."

_Which makes it all the more convenient, doesn't it?_

"In that case," Sumeragi said, "this meeting is done. Meet back up tomorrow for final briefing." The screen went out, and the Meisters left the room. Allelujah and Tiera went towards their rooms, and Lockon ambled to Setsuna's room and knocked on the door. After a moment, Setsuna opened the door, clad in a loose white shirt and some boxers. Lockon was suddenly reminded of how much he wanted to get out of his own pilot suit.

"You looked a bit troubled back there, Setsuna. Is there anything wrong? Anything I can do for you?" Something passed through Setsuna's eyes faster than Lockon could catch.

_Yes! _"No." And with that, the door slid shut meaningfully. Lockon stared at the door, blinked, and then walked away.

--

In a bed far away, Graham Acre was slowly waking up. He may have been unaware what he had done to a certain pilot's mind, but then again he himself was repeatedly going over their fight in his own mind. He was alive, which was good, and not missing any limbs, which was even better, but not being able to defeat the Gundam was at the forefront of his mind. Then, in an instant, it wasn't. There was movement beside him.

Turning his head, he could only see a form-hiding white lab coat and the end of a long stretch of hair. He made the appropriate conclusion. "Nurse?"

A soft but not gentle hit on his head rewarded him. "It wasn't funny the first time, Graham, and it isn't funny now." Ah, Katagiri, his faithful friend.

There was a soft giggle; Graham turned to the other side and saw an actual woman in a lab coat. "Ah, so you're the nurse?" he asked with a grin on his face, hamming it up.

The woman smiled. "Not quite; I'm a doctor, and it's my happy assessment to tell you that you're completely fine. Quite an achievement, considering the state you brought your mobile suit back in."

Graham nodded. He would have known had he been injured, after all. "So tell me," he started another friendly jab, "did Katagiri stay at my side the entire time?"

"Like you were his once-lost love." The doctor could kid with the best of them.

Katagiri sighed; this was typical Graham humor. He decided to get back on track. "If you must know, I was reading a book while waiting for the results. Do you want them now or not?"

Graham heard the tone, and shifted to business mode. The Doctor did as well, and quietly moved out of the room. She had her own report to file. "And how was it?"

Katagiri checked his notes, a show only; Graham was sure Katagiri knew exactly what he was going to say. "Your suspicions were correct; it looks like the light particles are directly tied to the Gundam's abilities. Both your Flag and the tests you ordered on yourself show evidence of radiation of some kind. Whatever it is, I've never seen it before. We're going to kick it, and the battle data you brought back, up stairs for analysis. The radiation spiked massively when the Gundam used its energy sword, and your plasma blade has residual marks from your first strike against its solid sword. I'm willing to bet that a lot of engineers are going to have a number of sleepless nights thanks to you."

Graham smirked at Katagiri's accusing tone; he knew that Katagiri was going to be one of those techies, and was itching to figure out the Gundam's mysteries. "Aside from that, what else?"

Katagiri sighed. "I know what you're asking, and the answer is no. No sign of Celestial Being at the moment, no substantial new information has come up, though some are claiming a guy dead two hundred years is involved, and we don't know where they ran off to. Not that it matters; you don't have a suit to chase after them with anymore. Orders came in while you were asleep; both the Flag and the plane are to report to the nearest Union airbase, so that they can be studied for clues of the Gundams."

Graham sighed. No helping for it, he supposed. Getting out of the bed, he started looking for a uniform. The hospital gown, while necessary, was not long-term wear. The plane was too cold, with too many drafts. By Katagiri's movement out the door, he agreed as well. Graham jumped up, though, when he realized that Katagiri had not closed the door there were footsteps outside the hall. The Doctor stopped and looked in, raised an eyebrow as Graham turned around for decency's sake, and closed the door.

"_Cheeky bastard,"_ Graham thought.

And in some other plane, a Voice watched and looked to work with the two in the future…


	3. The World With Erie Similarities

This episode summary/parody was made after there was a long delay in the release of the third episode sub, and it was revealed that one of the main translators had been hit by a car while taking out the trash. Funny in retrospect, but probably not at the time. But with the lack of a true episode sub, I decided to make my own summary. A total lack of Japanese language skills is of no matter.

This was one of my first dedicated comedy/parody attempts, and the results are mixed. It is a pale imitation of the style of "A Typical Episode of Gundam Seed Destiny" over at the MAHQ forums. I highly recommend everyone go over there and read it, so that you can realize just how mockable that series really is. Because imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, not evidence of a lack of originality…

--

Gundam 00 Episode 3: The World With Erie Similarities

OR

Count the Cameos (hint, not many)

--

(The fight between the totally awesome Union ace Graham Acre and Heero-wannabe Gundam Meister Setsuna picks up exactly where it left off, swords locked together. No flashback to when they conveniently met five seconds ago, no inter-episode gundam-jack, nothing. But since you're special, I'll include the only line that matters. )

Graham: You've captured my heart, Gundam! (Yes, that was how one sub translated it.)

(And then this.)

(Graham ducks a non-stock footage slash from the Exia and puts the Flag's hand on the Exia's shoulder. A loud metal screech results.)

Setsuna: (angry) You idiot! You scratched my paint job, and I haven't even finished making payments yet! Die!

(Setsuna flies forward and slashes the Flag's Linear rifle with the brand new GN Saber! Not a beam sabre that's cliche. GN particles are the new M-particles, Nancy.)

Graham: Fine! I don't want to play with you any more anyway!

--

(Daybreak's Bell plays)

--

(The opening fades away. We are on the Nameless-Union-Transport-That-Looks-Like-A-Stealth-Bomber, aka NUTTLLASB. We'll just call it the transport. In it, Graham and Billy Katigiri are sitting in a small room inside the transport, while the Flag is parked in Gerwalk mode in the enormous hanger inside the tiny plane. Graham is talking to Katagiri; Katagiri is on typing on a computer with coffee next to him.)

Graham: (completely different personality than before)He was a worthy adversary, so I let him go.

Katagiri: (sipping coffee while typing, not looking up) Uhuh.

Graham: (Arms crossed) Yeah, really. He put up a good fight, but it was no contest.

Katagiri: …says the guy who only touched him once.

Graham: Hey! Once was all I needed! I was totally owning that kid! Compared to the AEU or HRL grunts, I'm a god just for surviving!

Katagiri: …you were totally disarmed in under thirty five seconds, and then ran away crying.

Graham: But I still look awesome by comparison! Already, American teenagers are worshiping me!

Katagiri: …true.

--

(Scene change. A number of short scenes from the various powers around the world. News and intelligence agencies across the world are looking for any hint of Celestial Being. So far, the CIA and one reasonably hot reporter have tracked down and are focusing on a man who died two hundred years ago. The CIA stops pursuing this track of how a man they killed so long ago could be doing this; clearly, they are idiots. However, all the highest offices of the world receive a similar briefing. Let's go to the AEU.)

Minister-person of the AEU: That's it?

Appropriately European Aide: Yes minister. It is our judgment that Celestial Being is evil, good, and stupid, all at the same time.

Minister-guy: Explain this to me. I'm a bureaucrat from a lineage of bureaucrats dating back to the first days of the European Union; I don't understand.

Aide: Yes minister. We know they are evil because they blew up our stuff and are represented by a guy who wears a black coat and a monocle. Two of those could be a coincidence; you can't go outside here in the future without bumping into some deadly guy who wears black. And humiliating us with a major international incident by exposing our breaking of a major treaty could be an accident. But a monocle? Only evil people wear monocles.

Minister-dude: And the good and stupid parts?

Aide: Oh, that. They're good because they oppose all war and attacked the Human Reform League. They're stupid because they attacked the Human Reform League and oppose all war while attacking the Human Reform League. But don't worry; despite having our airspace around our critical orbital tower penetrated at will, we techno-conglomerates who are holding all of Africa as an empire again are perfectly safe. Evil realists always win, because good is stupid.

Minister-chum: Oh. Well, I always thought I was more realistic than evil, but it's good to know that I have nothing to fear. In that case, I suppose I should approve that measure to sell more mobile suits to independent nations, even though they will likely end up in the hands of terrorists.

Aide: Very good minister.

--

(Scene change. The Gundam Meisters sans Setsuna are at a weird table at the base of the HRL's tower. Setsuna comes up to the table.)

Setsuna: Sorry I'm late. Last parking spot that would take the Exia got jacked by some Yank from Jersey. That fat idiot pile-drived me for the spot. Then his pet monkey flicked me off.

Lockon: Ah, now worries. Don't worry, your drink is still warm.

Setsuna: (eyebrow raised) Is that milk?

Lockon: Oh, yeah. You're just a little guy, so you need some to grow big and tall.

Setsuna: (eyes narrow) Last week was more than enough. We don't need that again.

Allelujah: What? Oh yeah, the yao- (Setsuna grabs his arm)

Setsuna: Not in public, or I'll tell everyone what really happened to make your hair that way.

Allelujah: …fine. Wait, where did Tiera go?

Lockon: Oh, he went back to the Ptolemy, which uses our Gundams as giant batteries in an example of brilliant thinking of the future. Apparently Sumeragi was using the Food Processor Unit for beer again.

Setsuna: …and how's he getting into orbit again? GN particles?

Lockon: Oh, he's just taking the space elevator. Clearly, with all the powers looking under every rock for us, they won't do a cursory scan of their own space elevators!

(Flash over to Tiera, who is currently on the elevator and counting the levels as he's rising)

Tiera: Two thousand three, two thousand four, two thousand five…

(Flash back to the base of the elevator. Lockon walks out yawning with his arms raised high; Allelujah and Setsuna scoot upwind. As they leave, the camera moves over to a group of HRL soldiers standing in front of another door.)

HRL Grunt: How long are we going to have to stay here, sir? Three guys have already fainted, and now something's reeking up the air.

HRL More-Important grunt: I told you it wasn't me, didn't I? And we'll wait however long it takes. Other militaries show up thirty minutes early; we show up thirty hours! Deal!

(Before Grunt can answer, the sliding door opens. Out comes a scarred HRL officer. This is Sergei Smirnov, typically Russian in an alliance where India and China have infinitely larger populations. He is carrying a suitcase almost as big as he is, with the occasional piece of dress or undergarment hanging out.)

Sergei: Please forgive my delay. I was asked to carry down one of Wang Liu Mei's luggage bags left over from the party. You would think that five outfits in three episodes would be enough, but noooo, Comrades.

(Ass-kissing More-Important Grunt moves forward to take the bag; Sergei waves him back.)

Sergei: It is alright Comrade, I will carry it. I was told that if I took it everywhere with me, I would get Liu Mei's autograph, Comrade!

(Out of the suitcase falls various cameras and automated spy equipment; Sergei puts them back in without looking at them.)

Sergei: But enough about this; take me where I am to go, Comrade.

--

(Scene flash. Graham and Katagiri are in uniform in the Union military headquarters, somewhere in South America. They are standing in front of an officer who looks upset.)

Officer: I know that both of you have been model soldiers, well respected by your peers. Katagiri, you helped develop the Union Flag. Acre, you are one of our most famous aces. But both of you have violated the agreement you made when you signed up. In taking a rule conveniently three hundred odd years old and dubiously stretching a past political issue to this age and time, I am afraid I am going to have to dismiss you for violating the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy.

Graham: (Blink) …sir? I just asked Katagiri if he knew what was for dinner. He told me. That's not what that policy's about.

Officer: Really? I feel like a moron. Here, take these assignments to the new anti-Celestial Being group and try not to suck any more.

Graham: Who do you think I am, Patrick from episode 1?

Officer: True. Just don't suck like that genetic clone the two of you split genes for. What was his name again?

Katagiri: Jerid. Appearance from the father, attitude from the father. Don't ask who the other father is.

--

(Scene change again. It's high school in Japan. Saji Crossroad is bored in class, his girlfriend Louise Halevy typing away behind him.)

Teacher: And in the twilight of the twentieth century, the even we now know as Second Impact…

Saji: Sigh, I wish I could just scene-flash ahead…

SCENE FLASH! SAJI AND LOUISE ARE AT THE CAFETTERIA!

Saji: Wha…? That rocks!

Louise: …huh? Have you been listening to a word I said, or were you looking at my bust again?

Saji: (thinking) Trick question, trick question! What was the right answer again… (out loud) Listening of course! What kind of guy do you think I am?

Louise: I don't know, one that thinks my cousin finding she has breast cancer rocks? Men! Why can't you be a super cool, hansom, and socially inept soldier like your next-door neighbor's boyfriend? Geez, if he wasn't already taken I'd dump you in a minute!

(She struts away, while other students laugh at Saji as he chases after her.)

Saji: (thinking) At least now I can fast forward through the apology to the good stuff, without having to put up with the talking anymore…

--

(Change scene to a nice fancy restaurant. Liu Mei, in yet another dress, is drinking an orange beverage. A long line of men are behind her, each holding either a drink or another flattering dress. A classy man cuts in front of the line, nods to Liu Mei's bodyguard/bouncer, and sits across from her. The rest of the men groan and disperse.)

Alejandro Corner: Having a soft drink I see? Perfect imitation coke of some sort?

Liu Mei: Mr. Wayne already tried to ply me up with alcohol earlier, and I've already seen three guys and one girl try and slip Red Comet pills into my drink. I think I'll play it safe now.

Alejandro: (hides bottle of pills in back pocket) Well, I have business to talk about, so I wouldn't dream of that. Perhaps your bodyguard would like a drink from the bar?

(Hong Long goes to the bar. Before he orders a drink, a drink appears in front of him.)

??: Comer here often?

(It is Alejandro's own companion. Long's eyes widen as he sees a bottle of pills be put away.)

--

(Scene change. The HRL base at Siri Lanka from the last episode is back, and Sergei is being briefed about the Kyrios's ejected missile container.)

Grunt: So we're kind of mixed. Half of us feel that this is disgusting and should be punished, while the rest of us wonder just how we would fine them for mobile-suit scale littering in the first place.

Sergei: …I was given to understand that we had called in our forensics experts to track down clues from the container, Comrade.

Grunt: Well, that too, but the environment is important too! I'll go get the Doc, though. Hey, Doc! New Inspector is here to look at the evidence!

(A man in a lab coat comes up, clearly having spent untold hours already looking over the missile pod.)

Doc: Oh great, another one. You inspectors are all the same. You come to the scene after we spend all those hours looking everything over, and then try to just go up and pick some piece of hair as the clue that will solve the crime. Well I got news for you, buster, it doesn't work like that! A crime scene investigation is a very intense process done by experts, not something that any half baked inspector can…

Sergei: I am not an inspector, Comrade.

Doc: …you're not?

Sergei: No. I am just in charge of the overall investigation of this matter. I want to know what you have found so far, Comrade.

Doc: You're not going to solve the mystery in a convenient half-hour timeslot?

Sergei: It would be nice if I could, but no, Comrade.

Doc: In that case, sorry. Let me get my techno babble to English dictionary out…

--

(Scene shift back to Graham, who is looking over his Flag on a platform. An old man with a crane walks forward. This might be the real Alejandro Corner; I don't know.)

Old man Corner: So, you seek to defeat your enemy, boy?

(Graham says nothing, just keeps looking at his Flag.)

Old man: I say, do you seek power to conquer your rival?

(Graham still says nothing.)

Old man: Hey, whiper-snapper! Down here!

Graham: (takes out headphones, which are playing Daft Punk) Yeah? What is it, old man?

Old man: You want me to make your mobile suit better for your next fight? I can have it done by next week for free!

Graham: Please, this a well maintained, cutting piece of military technology. You can't just boost its performance in a week. What do you think this is, a cartoon?

Old man: Ah, but I'm a crazy mad scientist! I have my own secret lab of uncertain funding to do this! Why, I've been making robots super before you were a gleam in your daddy's eye! Surely you've heard of… Erde Kaiser?

Graham: Nope.

Old man: Mazinger?

Graham: Nada.

Old man: Unit 01?

Graham: Sorry man.

Old man: (starts to cry) Is it so wrong to want to leave a legacy behind? Is it? I just wanted to be remembered as the man who made the robot of the unbeaten hero! Is that a crime?

Graham: Geeze, settle down. If you promise not to mess with my radio settings, you can fix my machine up.

Old man: That's better. Oh, did you know that we can use the paint on your Flag's fingers to trace Celestial Being? And that Celestial Being is attacking the weak and helpless and Human Reform League right now?

--

(Cue a short scene in which Lockon learns to shoot a beam pistol with work mechs in an Africa mine as his targets. He looks bored as the miners shoot to no effect. In South America, Allelujah drops dozens of dumb bombs on a drug farm, as the local farmers watch their only form of economic support burn in front of them. Clearly Celestial Being is a force for good that fights the fair fight, even more obvious as the Exia spins around in its "Stellar Dance", cutting down hapless Zakus, er, Tierens, left and right. Suddenly, shells burst near the Exia.)

??: Stop right there! In the name of the series ugliest mech so far, I will punish you, Comrade!

(It is Sergei, in a Tieren high mobility type. Six times as fast as a regular Tieren (take that, Char!), but twice as ugly, the Tieren HMT zooms past as the Exia ducks. The Tieren keeps going forward, and keeps going forward, and…)

Setsuna: If I wasn't such a bad shot with my beam rifle, he'd be dead by now…

Sergei: Ah, finally got that turned around, sorry about that. Now, to prove how awesome I am, I will beat you without my gun! This hand of mine glows with an ugly power! It's loud roar tells me to defeat you! Tieren Finger, Comrade!

(The Tieren HMT grabs Setsuna's face. Well, the Exia's. Setsuna would be squashed if it was actually his face.)

Setsuna: Want me to chop off your arm? You asked for it!

(The Exia swings its GN blade, but the blade doesn't cut through the Tieren's armor. Setsuna is shocked.)

Setsuna: My sword doesn't work? But what will I do if I can't spam my sword?

Sergei: Get creative is what I would say, but you're done with! I will forever go down as the man who beat the main gundam in the third episode! I will clearly surpass Char and Jerid and Athrun in terms of rival greatness! And Graham too, Comrade!

Setsuna: Well, two of those aren't hard, but psyche!

(Setsuna takes out his GN saber and proceeds to chop off the Tieren HMT's limbs in what is clearly an over-powered and cheap move. How dare a mobile suit use a beam-saber in a grapple? The tieren falls down, and a few more explosions rip across the body.)

Sergei: …or maybe not, Comrade.

--

(Scene shift to space, where Tiera and the Virtue approach the mothership to serve battery duty. As the Virtue docks, Tiera looks bored.)

Tiera: Man, this is boring. Why couldn't that punk Setsuna or someone else come up here? I don't feel good unless I'm using my BFG, and there's no one to use it on here.

(Sumeragi pops up on the screen. She is wearing a dress that accents her generous curves, and her hair miraculously hangs mostly down in zero g while other parts… don't.)

Sumeragi: Tiera, you're more than welcome to come on board if you wish; I still have some beer left in my cabin if you want some.

Tiera: No, I'm fine Captain. The sooner I'm done, the sooner I can get back to Earth.

Sumeragi: Are you sure? You're more than welcome in here, no need to be alone in that cold cockpit

Tiera: I'm perfectly fine. Some time alone won't be the end of me. Thank you for your offer though, Captain.

Sumeragi: (After the screen closes) …and you wonder why some question your gender? (Shakes head.)

--

(Scene change again. We're back in Japan, and Saji approaches his door. As he puts in his key, Setsuna puts his key in the next door over. Setsuna has a bandage over his head.)

Saji: Hey! So I guess you're my new neighbor!

Setsuna: …yes.

Saji: What's your name?

Setsuna: …Setsuna

Saji: Ookay… how did you get hurt?

Setsuna: … I tried to open the door on the other side of yours, and some girl with blue hair hit me with a fan. Then her boyfriend tried to shoot me, but she hit him harder.

Saji: Haha, Kaname's pretty nice once you get to know her. Just don't look like you're trying to pick her door open, she hates that. Say, want to hang out sometime?

Setsuna: …no.

Saji: Oh, well, never mind then. Later.

(Saji goes into his home, but as he enters his sister, the female reporter from earlier, is leaving.)

Saji: Going out sis?

Kinue: I swear, I'm spending so much time looking for info on Celestial Being that if I ever find that a lead were right next door, I, I, I don't know what I would do!

Saji: Well, sucks to be you. I'm going to veg in front of the tv, not do any homework.

(Kinue flicks him off as he goes to the living room, but he doesn't see it. Instead, his phone rings. It's Louise.)

Louise: Hey Saji, turn on the news! Even though the story is already playing as I'm talking to you, if you turn on now you're sure to enter at a conveniently informative point with no confusion!

Saji: Ok!

Newsman: For those of you just turning in, in Britain today a holdout group of an insurgent group that disarmed over three hundred years ago has finally unilaterally agreed to cease its rebellion against the British State, which hasn't existed within the European Union for nearly as long. Public opinion across the islands is potent, with thousands asking any reporter who approaches them "Who are these bloody wankers again?" and "Why haven't I heard of them before?" Some are already attributing this miraculous occurrence to the mysterious but peace-seeking private army Celestial Being, who just last night simultaneously attacked farms in South America, a mining complex in Africa, and Human Reform League military outpost. I, for one, would like to welcome our new Celestial overlords.

Saji: Wow, that was conveniently timed, and informative to boot. Has Celestial Being already started to change the world for the better, or are they just a bunch of idealistic morons?

Find out next week, when Episode 4 comes out!


	4. Serious Reflections

That's right. I predicted the reasoning and goal of Celestial Being at episode _four_, with strong suspicions by two and three.

--

Serious Reflections

"We plan to fail. That is the first truth you must understand as a member of Celestial Being. We aim to end wars, to end conflict, but _never _let yourself suffer delusions of grandeur, that you might live to be recognized and praised for your victory over human nature. There lies arrogance and blindness that will doom you."

One was speaking, the other was listening. She was a new member of this secret order, selected only after grueling examinations, back ground tests, and more. She had promise, but there was still much for her to learn.

"Every member of Celestial Being knows our overriding goal, set down by Aeolia Schenberg himself. Not everyone knows how we will go about it, or why we have waited so long."

The speaker moved towards a window, overlooking the bright lit streets of Brussels. Celestial Being's agents could afford any local anywhere; one rumor had it that the interest alone from a fraction of a percent of the original Schenberg legacy alone could buy an entire luxury hotel chain a dozen times over. A rumor, but perhaps not exaggerated. Unlike some people, however, the speaker did not revel in the luxury, he merely tolerated it. Rather than wine, he held water in his glass.

"If we wished to destroy or wreck the world, we could have done so at any point in the last two centuries, once a presence in space was strong enough so that a shuttle heading towards the asteroid belt could be overlooked and hidden. An asteroid, even one merely strong enough to throw the world into chaos and to press humanity to consolidate, would have been well within our capabilities.

He sipped his water, wetting his throat. She looked out the window herself, listening as he continued.

"However, we knew from the history of the Energy Crisis that humanity would fight over the scraps that remained, rather than unify. At such a junction of global disaster, even if one side won, it would be a Pyrrhic victory at the cost of humanity. Genocide is entirely opposed to our goal.

"If we wished to overthrow the world, to take the capitals and control centers of the world by force of arms, we could have done so in the last several decades. It would have required a great recruitment of pilots, and risked security breach, but we had both the technology and the resources to shatter their defenses by storm, to crush the centers of control and to watch as the main alliances splintered as they lost control of the subordinate states.

"However, we also knew from the breakup of major powers of old, such as the Soviet Union of the Twentieth Century, that should a major power be brought low, it fractures into a thousand political entities, all farther from unification than where they started. International anarchy is also incompatible with our goals. Without someone to guide a peace, multipolarity sets in, and unity is increasingly distant.

"But now, now we can act, and now we must act. Do you know why?"

She shook her head, though she may well have heard this all before. Her face betrayed nothing.

"We can act now because a new level of stability has been achieved in the world, but one that is still young enough to be malleable. The Solar System is completed; the economic turmoil that provoked troubles endlessly has been over for ten years. But most still remember the troubles, and have come to terms with the need to abandon the nation-states of old and to embrace new multinational unions. The chains of nationalism that held against the calls of class and race in previous centuries have been broken, and what has been broken once can be broken again. Should the need prove itself, the people will be willing to do what they have done once already, to join an even larger alliance of nations even further separated from their homes. An alliance, perhaps, that even requires the entirely of mankind to unite against some threat.

"And we of Celestial Being are that threat. We know the exact limits of the enemy, and have stepped beyond that limit tenfold. Our mobile suits have overwhelming tactical firepower, defense, and the nature of the GN particles makes them an ideal unit for facing numerically superior enemies. Our information sources are buried everywhere, so that we can move at will and know almost any relevant detail. From the space elevators to the Pacific Islands to the heart of Africa, there is nowhere we cannot move our Mobile Suits. If needed, we could even fight through the capital cities of the three powers, some of the most heavily defended places on the planet, without a single casualty on our side. No single nation can beat us; only by working together can they hope to overcome us, and if they ally themselves there, they can ally themselves elsewhere as well. That is our goal, to be overcome by our enemies, but in doing so forge them into a single force."

"That is why we can. But do you know why we must act now, after hundreds of years in the shadows?"

She responded in a monotone, reciting chapter and verse of past lessons.

"We must act quickly because humanity is approaching a new age of civilization and technology that will limit our influence, the two main factors being the colonies and the development of beam technology by the powers. Should the colonization of space be divided between the powers, humanity may never be able to unify regardless of what goes on Earth; Celestial Being must act before that occurs. And while the Gundams are far in advance of any normal mobile suit, the establishment of the theory of beam weapons by the three powers may lead to a sharp reduction in our advantage. Beam weapons are effective even against our Gundams, and should Celestial Being wait another decade, standard enemy mobile suits may be equipped with such."

The male speaker nodded.

"Precisely. That is why we have sent Captain Sumeragi and the Gundam Meisters out despite there being only four of them, and that is why we have rolled the die on this final intervention. We have our final chance to fulfill Schenberg's legacy, and to change humanity once and for all."

He had been walking to the wine cabinet, and had taken out an expensive-looking bottle of wine which was actually sparkling water, his sole self-allowed luxury. After filling two glasses, he offered one to her, and took the other for himself.

"Within the next two years, Celestial Being will be dead. No credit will be unspent, no weapon spared, no life unused, to fulfill our intervention. And so, I offer a toast, to our brave Gundam Meisters and members of Celestial Being who have willingly taken this role and given away their own futures for humanity. To those who are about to die, we salute you!"


	5. Bonds That Tie

Not much to say here. Back at the beginning, it wasn't clear where Louise was from, and I thought she was from America. So I thought, since they (possibly) were both blond Americans, that I'd find some way to connect Louise and Graham through some military-civilian correspondence program.

Meh, it made more sense at the time, I suppose.

--

00 Drabble 5

Bonds that Tie

"Ovey ovey! I just want to sleep!"

After a interesting (curse the man who came up with that saying!) week that involved a trip to one of the three orbital elevators of the world, two near-death experiences at said elevator, and many other frustrations, Louise collapsed on her bed with a sigh, not even bothering to change into her normal night clothes. But despite being exhausted, sleep would not come. A nap on the descending train and the plane ride back to Japan had let her sleep, if not rest, and now she was paying the price.

A sigh. And then she rolled over, took her holo-computer from her bedside drawer, and called up the email service.

"If I can't sleep, I guess I'll just have to write the letter to Brother…"

And so she started typing the email of her last several days. It might even let her vent a bit about Saji, the clueless geek she called a boyfriend. Brother wouldn't mind; she wrote to him about Saji a lot. He normally said nice words of encouragement, though sometimes Louise wondered if Brother's friend helped write those return mails. It wouldn't be the first time.

--

**Konichiwa, Brother!**

**It's Louise, of course, back in Japan once again. I know I told you that I was going up the Pillar of Heaven orbital tower this week, but did you know that I was part of the block that fell away after the accident? It's true! It was really scary, and we all thought we were going to die until the mobile suits started pushing us away. Apparently, one of them was a gundam! I don't know which one, but aren't you investigating them?**

**But that was later. The trip to the tower itself was great; zero-g is fun! I arranged for Saji and I to have a private cabin rather than one of those crowded public ones. I think his sister was a bit jealous of us, even though she says she doesn't quite approve of me. She likes me enough, but she thinks I'm too rich for Saji. She didn't realize I could hear her when she said that, though! Her face when I told her was priceless! **

**Saji, though, is a dork. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, but you were right in your impression of him. He's cute and lovable, but he's also a dork and doesn't do fun stuff unless you push him to doing it. He's naïve to boot, even if that's part of his charm. Did you know that he thought the "Mile-High Club" was a sandwich? Aargh! That boy is so clueless sometimes! Clueless clueless clueless!**

**He can't even be a cool hero if his life depended on it! We did a spacewalk at the low-orbital tower, where there's still slight gravity. I got him to join me on the edge, where we had a beautiful view of the Earth below us. After making sure my safety cord was secure, I "accidentally" started to fall backwards, so Saji would catch me. The goof wasn't paying attention, and ended up lunging late at me and falling with me! It was a stupid idea, I know, but you wouldn't have fallen like that. Why can't Saji be cooler?**

**Sometimes I wonder why I bother. On the train ride up, when we had zero-g, he was more interested in the explanation of how the solar power system works than in hanging out with me, even though I **

**brought food into space to eat. Then when we were walking in the gravity hub, he had the audacity to check out some Chinese girl who was already walking with a guy. Men! (No offence!)**

**I swear, the only redeeming part for him was that he didn't panic when the gravity hub broke off. Unlike some of the grown men, he didn't start screaming, and made sure that I was alright before we set off to figure out what had happened. When we were about to enter the gravity well, I was going to tell him, well, you know… but before I could, the Gundam showed up and interrupted. **

**I didn't tell him afterwards, and I slept on the descent and the plane back to Japan. So did he, I think, though he put a blanket over me when he thought I was asleep. I'll have to make that up to him soon. He isn't a bad guy, even though I might complain about him. Otherwise, I wouldn't still be with him. **

**Thanks for listening, Brother. I needed to vent that out, and now I feel like I'm about to crash. Goodnight, I'll right to you again soon.**

**Your Sister,**

**Louise**

**--**

The ping on the desk was the signal that Graham's pocket computer had received the email from Louise, and a picture she had sent lit up a corner of the screen. Master Sergeant Dutch, the African American under Graham's command, picked up the PC from the shelf it was on and took a look at the picture.

He cocked an eye; the picture was quite flattering to Louise. "A bit young for you, isn't she Lieutenant? Doesn't even look twenty yet; you like them young?"

Katagiri, who was also in the office, snorted in amusement. Graham looked up from the paperwork he had been going over and looked to see what Darryl was talking about. Seeing Louise's photo, he chuckled.

"Sorry Dutch, but you should know by now that I only have eyes for the Gundam. That's just Sister; she sends me emails everyonce in awhile. Hand that here, if you would. Apparently she was at the Human Reform League's tower during the incident, and I'm guessing she finally got around to sending me a email."

Dutch handed the computer over, making connections in his head. "I thought the Lieutenant didn't have any siblings…" he trailed off.

While Graham read the mail, Katagiri answered. "You're right; they aren't actually related. Louise, that's her name, got connected to Graham through a "Siblings in Service" government program several years ago back when Graham had just been commissioned, part of a school project. Graham was "Brother in Arms," while she was "Sister Civilian." They liked it enough that they've kept up contact for the last couple years." Katagiri turned towards Graham, who was had a mix of amusement and surprise on his face. "She talking about Saji again? That's her boyfriend." The last part was to Dutch.

"You guessed it. And you owe me five bucks while you're at it; I was right, and he _didn't_ know what the Mile High Club was. Doesn't look like Louise got to explain it to him properly either." He grinned as Katagiri groaned at the jab. "Turns out she was one of the people in the hub section that broke away, though. That was surprising."

Both Dutch and Katagiri looked surprised as well. "Are they alright?"

Graham nodded. "Apparently Saji got good marks for how he handled the situation. Didn't panic, kept his head on his shoulders, and made sure to look after Louise. You can tell she's proud of that. I've got to give him credit for that; I don't know many people who would keep their cool when sent off towards reentry. Better send an email back to her soon."

And he did, later that day.

**Dear Sister Civilian…**


	6. Alterations

A "What If" idea for 00, which, for some reason, I have yet to continue despite liking it. It might show itself again with a continuation next season, or maybe not, but it should become apparent that I like alternate histories/AU where everything changed with one (or two) point of departure.

--

Gundam 00 Drabble 6

Alterations

Phase 1: Billy Katagiri

It was one of the seedier bars in the neighborhood, in a very controlled way. A place for guys who wanted to look tough, but not be in a place with a reputation for bar fights and other things that might require a man to walk the walk. It was, in short, an odd place, and Billy Katagiri looked ridiculous in his ever present lab jacket. But he ignored the stares and headed to the side of the always polished bar and saw a figure watching a news report on a personal holo screen. From the looks of it, is was of the nearing showdown between Celestial Being and the AEU over Moralia.

"What do you think, does it bring back memories?" Billy asked as he slid beside his companion. "A Scotch if you would," he asked the bartender a moment later. He was quite fond of wine, but for a place like this some appearances had to be made.

"Perhaps," his companion answered, looking at him for the first time.

"And? What do you think?" Billy asked. "What is your professional opinion?"

"Since when did I ever have a professional opinion? Soldiers weren't supposed to have politics, remember?"

"That never stopped you when it applied to your job, I remember. How long has it been since we last had a drink?"

"Who can say for sure? I don't know, which makes me feel old now. So tell me, why did you want to meet in person? What couldn't you say over the phone, but can say here?"

Billy reached into his coat and grasped a box. Handing it over, he looked forward and sipped his drink. Doing this was harder than when he asked for his wife's hand in marriage; at least then he had an idea of what the answer would be.

"This is…" his companion trailed off as he looked at the insignia in his hands. Years ago he would have been exhilarated. Shortly afterwards, he would have been glad and possibly thanking his lucky stars. Now he looked at the insignia with a mix of confusion and something else. "Is this what I think it is?"

"Yes. A commission to the rank of First Lieutenant as an instant promotion from your old rank, a full pardon and clearing of your record of the Incident, and a correction to your profile to mark you as having been on extended leave. It will be as if you never left." Billy paused, and then leaned forward and whispered in a confidential tone. "You and I both know that the Incident wasn't your fault, and that you were set up for the fall. And you know I've worked over these years to clear your name. And this is your chance! The top is so desperate for someone like you they don't care who! You can return with your head high, and all you have to do is accept this one assignment! Graham!" The last word came out with emphasis; Billy wanted his old friend back, the way he was before the Incident that ruined him.

Graham looked at the insignia again, and closed it in his fist. "You were able to convince them to do this, Billy? They are desperate, aren't they? What's so important that those who hung me out to dry would let me back?" Graham saw Billy wince slightly at the acidic tone, and back-peddled. "I'm long since forgiven her, Billy. I know why she had to do what she did, and I don't hold it against her. As far as she's concerned, I've forgotten about the Incident. It's those others that still get to me. What do they want?"

Billy took another sip from his scotch. So Graham _was _still bitter from how he had been made the scapegoat for the incident, if not at him. Not what Billy had wanted, but there was no helping it. He continued. "We want you to come on board of the Anti Gundam Investigation Unit as one of our pilots. You'd be working with me and my wife, as well as any pilot you feel the need to conscript for the purpose of capturing a Gundam."

Graham snorted in amusement; clearly the military hadn't learned to make names that made sense since he had left. Billy continued. "We don't just need good pilots; we need the best. You remember Lieutenant Yamamato?"

Graham nodded, even as he was pleased at the flattery. Yamamato was one of the most famous pilots in the Union's military, if paradoxically one of the gentlest people in the world. He was famous for once having taken out twelve Tierens, two of them high-mobility types, in two minutes during a sortie in the Pacific. Graham had never flown against him back in the service, but Yamamato was a bar everyone sought to pass.

"He was shot down in under a minute by one of the Gundams while on a reconnaissance patrol over the Pacific. He survived despite being slashed mere meters over his cockpit, but the only time he touched the Gundam was when his mobile suits arm scrapped some paint off while falling to the Pacific. That paint is the only forensic evidence we have of the Gundams yet. All the Union's top scientists are on the case, and only the top have any clue as to what we're seeing. Even I'm not being told, and I near invented the Flag!"

Graham digested this, but said nothing. Truth be told, he was surprised anyone could beat Yamamato that easily. Surprised, and perhaps a little pleased. Good, thought Billy. He was interested, and that was the most important part.

"That's why we need you, Graham. You're a survivor, and the Union needs to capture a Gundam before either Celestial Being turns its sights on us or another power captures the a Gundam themselves. So what do you say? Just say the word and you can have it all back. Your pride, your place, and a challenge of a life time. You can have it all once again. What do you say? It'll be just like old times." By now, Billy was giving a smile that challenged Graham to do anything other than to take on the world. Any moment now, Billy thought. Any moment now, and the Graham he had known would be back on the team, and Celestial Being wouldn't stand a chance…

"No." Billy blinked. He had been sure he was close…

"Why?" He would accept it, it wasn't like he could force Graham to pilot at gunpoint, but he had been sure. "Why not? Is it still the Incident?"

Graham smiled, and for a moment Billy felt like they were back to the days of being young men in the Union's military. "Don't take it personally. It's not you, Billy, and like I said earlier I've long since made my peace in regards to your wife. It's not even the Incident; I rarely think about it these days. Had you come six years ago, or even four, I would have leapt at the chance, but not now. I've gotten involved in other things since then, and now I'm in the middle of something big. I can't tell you what, though I'm sure you'll know one of these days. But until then, I can't go back. Sorry to disappoint you, Billy." He extended his hand, and Billy took it. They had never stopped being friends, but now they were connected once again.

Billy sighed. "There's no helping it, I suppose." A wry smile graced his lips. "You were always stubborn and unpredictable, you know that?" He rose, but spoke again. "You know how to contact me; if you ever change your mind, and I do mean ever, the door will always be open for you. Don't be a stranger."

"Don't worry; I won't. I'll aim to keep in touch more, though.

"And Graham?"

"Yeah Billy?"

"I really wish you had joined back up." And Billy turned as Graham watched him walk away.

--

Billy opened the door quietly. He didn't want to wake anyone, but he was foiled. As he walked into his bedroom, the rustling of sheets told him that the other occupant was awake.

"Billy? Is that you?"

"You should be asleep, Sumeragi," he chided his wife. "You know you've been spending too much time on those simulations lately."

"There are too many variables when it comes to Celestial Being, and if I forget any of them the whole system is off. I think I figured out what will happen, though."

"Yes?" he asked like he was supposed to while he slipped into nightwear.

"Short of pulling out a new trick, at least one of the Gundams will be brought down over Moralia. But since I know that, they likely know that, and if they know that then they've likely prepared a trick. I expect that the Gundams will win without a loss."

Billy knew he could trust her prediction; except for one infamous miscalculation, Sumeragi had been near flawless for years. She was a living legend in Union Military Intelligence, the person who had turned the very name from an oxymoron into a group that anti-Unionists trembled before. If she said four mobile suits would beat two hundred, only a fool or a gambler would bet otherwise. Except for one infamous mistake, of course…

They had been married long enough that their thoughts often ran parallel. She spoke with the first hint of hesitation he had heard from her in awhile. "And what did he say when you asked him?" It wasn't fear that made her hesitate; it was a feeling of responsibility that had lasted all these years.

Who she was talking about was clear, as was the reason for her hesitance. Even after so many years, she still had periods of depression, where she wondered what would have happened had she taken the fall as she should have, rather than allowing Billy and his friend to try and cover it up. When they had been caught, and Graham had been placed responsible for the failure of the operation, she knew she should have done something. But both Billy and Graham had told her not to, and so she had said nothing. It was the hardest decision she had ever made.

Her husband put his hand on her shoulder. "He said that he doesn't hold it against you, you know. He's forgiven you, and you should forgive yourself."

Tension flowed out of her shoulder, but she didn't let him change the subject. "He didn't accept because of the Incident though, correct?"

"Actually, he said it was because he had another commitment, though he didn't care to elaborate. I think we resolved things, though. I told him the offer would always be open, and he promised to try and stay in contact more often. Who knows with him? He might change his mind. We might meet again sooner than we think." And with that, he turned off the lights as he got in bed with his wife.

--

Elsewhere in the city, a man was speaking into a cell phone in the privacy of his hotel room.

"Yes Captain, don't worry. I'll be ready for tomorrow's mission. I just wanted to let you know that the Union's put their top engineer and their best strategic planner, against us now. They're already working on the Gundam technology, though he couldn't say what they have learned so far. I wanted to let you know about the new opportunity, should we ever wish to use it. We'll need to be cautious, now.

"Yes, yes sir. I understand. I'll be maintaining contact with him from now on."

"Understood. Out."

And with the last task of the day done, Gundam Meister Graham Acre went to sleep.


	7. Motivations

Twenty Motivations, two sentences each. You do the math, and you figure out who I'm talking about.

--

Gundam 00 Drabble 7

Motivations

1: Patricide

The curse of his actions was to see them before his eyes forever. The sole absolution will be to make a world where it could never happen again.

2: Abandonment

In space, no one could hear them scream. Now his cries will change the world.

3: Reciprocity

They took his parents. Now he will take theirs, until no one ever does it again.

4: Objectivity

The cold logic of their mission was all he needed. Sometimes, the village must be destroyed in order to save it.

5: Perfection

The only time she had made a major mistake before, it had cost here everything; her position, her love, and her conscience. It won't happen again.

6: Naïve Idealism

The ignorance of youth had played its hands. If the end is eternal peace, what do the means matter?

7: Guardian

He was strong enough that he could live in the world either way. But then, someone has to protect her.

8: Human Reform

He had always liked the idea, even if he felt the execution was lacking. Unlike them, he bwould/b cleanse the evils of humanity.

9: Vision

His vision had set everything in motion; everything. To a patient man, a year can pass without qualm; to him, hundreds.

10: Fealty

They had sought her when no other hope remained. In return, she would seek with all her power to deliver them.

11: Challenge

A woman of her ability could have thrived anywhere she chose, so why stay here? It certainly wasn't archaic nationalism; perhaps it was the challenge of having no cards but your advice to play.

12: Pride

Proof of excellence is proof of existence. However, mastery of games is not enough.

13: Prejudice

They were all beneath him; why shouldn't he believe it? They were gullible pawns who would go to hell for him for the sake of a kind word, and he was the one who moved the Queen.

14: Destiny

It was quite literally what she was born (no, made) to do. What other path or reason could there be?

15: Fatherland

He had offered his life to his homeland because it had given it to him in the first place. Now, however, ihe/i is the one who can offer life to one who has never had it.

16: Rise, Learn, and Grow

To be the strongest, to go the farthest, to climb the highest! There is no limit to his potential!

17: Sum of the Parts

By himself, he would be considered brilliant, intelligent, kind, and more. Together with his friend, they are more, and he knows it.

18: Discovery

Due to circumstances, she had started working in news long before her brother was even concerned with his girlfriend. Now a new phenomenon has appeared that she can't wrap her mind around, and it drives her nuts.

19. Bildungsroman

His is a man in potential, just as his life is an unwritten story. From here, the meaning is in the journey, not the destination.

20. Grow Up

Despite the knowledge and experience in her, she is still very much a child in some ways. However, she knows that the best days of her life won't last forever, and sometimes it worries her.


	8. Seven Stages of Grief

Gundam 00 Episode 8

Seven Stages of Grief

Stage 1: Shock

Graham collapsed on the couch, visibly shaken and drenched with sweat. He mouthed inaudible words, while at the same time staring at his gloved hands. While he accepted the coffee Billy handed to him, he made no other acknowledgment of his presence. He just sat there, oblivious to the world around him while Billy tried to ease his friend back into reality.

In the hallway, his two subordinates Warrant Officer Mason and Master Sergeant Dutch looked through the door at their stricken leader. While they wanted to help, they were clearly out of their depth and left the work to Billy, who had already shooed them out of the room. Instead, they were reduced to watching.

Master Sergeant Dutch was the first to break the silence. "It couldn't just be from being shot down, could it? Everyone has a bad day every once in a while, on occasionally you or I get him during practice and he's never been like this before." Confusion was clearly present on his African-American brows.

Warrant Officer Mason pushed his glasses back up his face before responding. "I don't think that's it either. Maybe it was something said during the fight?"

Dutch shook his head, the braids in the back of his hair flying. "I _know _it can't be that; I know for a fact that he's tougher than any trash talk. Nothing gets to him. Gotta be something else."

Mason looked back at Graham, who now sported a emergency blanket around his shoulders that Billy had dug up from somewhere.

"I don't know, Dutch. What the hell happened during his match with the AEU's Patrick Corlasawar to make him like this? Was it just losing to Corlasawar of all people?

Stage 2: Denial

_This is not happening. This is not happening. This is SO not happening!_ Saji fell backwards against the wall of his apartment entryway while staring straight into the living room. A gasp of surprise indicated that he had been seen, and the frantic sound of skin on fabric called images to his mind that he did not want to see right now.

"Saji!" That was Louise's voice, the epitome of surprise. "You were supposed to be gone longer!"

Somehow, Saji's first thoughts were of despair. "But Louise! Why? Why at all, and why him?"

Saji pointed a quivering figure at the half naked Setsuna who was standing behind the couch. He had apparently managed to throw on a pair of black pocketless spandex and gree sleeveless shirt in that instant, but just by standing and showing well toned muscles, he made Saji feel weak and inadequate. 

Setsuna merely nodded, and said in that monotone of his, "You normally take another twenty minutes, Crossroads."

Louise didn't help. Wearing a shear shirt that would be better called as decoration than modesty, she stood by Setsuna with a hand dancing up his exposed and glistening chest, one finger tracing a circle on his green shirt. "You never gave me the one last thing I wanted from you, Saji. You're innocence is charming, but sometimes a girl wants more. And when you didn't provide…"

Here she put her hand under the green shirt, and started slowly moving it downwards in a way that made Saji gulp. "I had to go somewhere else."

_What's gotten into her?_ Saji took a staggering step towards Louise, still on Setsuna's arm. "Louise, this isn't like you! I'm sorry, but I'll make it up to you! So please…"

Saji stopped short when Setsuna suddenly pulled out a black pistol, despite having no pockets. _Where did he pull that from? His a-_? "You'll do no such thing, Crossroads. You had your chance with her, and now it's my turn. You're no longer needed." Setsuna's horrifying smile made it all the more menacing.

_This can't be real!_ Saji thought, as Setsuna pulled the trigger…

And woke up screaming in his own bed as the alarm blared. Memories flooded back to him; his sister was out of town on work, Louise would be over any minute, and perhaps that last slice of pizza before the nap wasn't the best idea...

As he got a drink of water to cool his nerves, loud and authoritative pounding started at the his door. Saji hurried over to it, and opened it just in time to see Setsuna, dressed in black spandex and a sleeveless shirt, prepare to shoot off the door lock. Saji's blood pressure skyrocket even after his neighbor pointed the gun in a less threatening direction.

"I heard your scream. Are you alright, Crossroads?"

And most horrifying of all, Louise's head popped up from behind Setsuna's back, where she was hiding while grasping his arm.

Stage 3: Bargaining

"Fine, please. I'll even put in a good word for you."

" I said no, sorry."

"Look, I'll make it worth your while. I'm willing to slide a little something in, if it would grease any wheels."

"Who do you think I am? No means no."

"Alright , play coy. Oops! My wallet fell on the ground. Oh well, it's not like there's anything in there I can't afford to lose. I'll just look the other way now…"

"Bribing an officer is a federal crime, pilot, and it won't work on me."

"God damn it, do you even know who I am? I could make or break your career with a single letter, and when I make such a simple request like this you bring up all this damn red tape? Stuff the red tape! I'll be fine!"

"These visits would be much easier on you if you would just stay quiet and do as we say, you know. Now I'll have to sedate you to lower your blood pressure, and then you'll just be here for another twelve hours. You brought this on yourself; just accept that what we do is for your own good."

He had always hated hospitals before, and now he was given another reason why. It was truly a sad day in history when ace pilot Patrick Corlasawar couldn't even get real food inside a hospital.

Stage 4: Guilt

The worst part of it, Sergei mused as he used the military-grade brush to remove the last of the intricate ties and patterns in his hair, was that he felt so _guilty _in removing it. Clearly Soma would not remark on it one way or another; respect for superiors had been so ingrained in her that he suspected that she was confounded that he had let her do it in the first place. And just as clearly, keeping it would have shattered his image in the eyes of his other subordinates, which could be disastrous for discipline at a time when a single misstep could spell disaster.

But when he had asked about his subordinate's unique hair style on a whim, it had immediately become apparent that it was one of her few links to her humanity. Soma, the Indian designer baby whose entire life revolved around being the perfect little human machine, was attached to her hairstyle.

Personally, Sergei wondered where Soma would have learned the intricacies of hair braiding without a mother or sister to pass it on. Perhaps the labs in which she had been raised had suffered a bout of cultural-related political correctness and had taught her as a matter of policy. Maybe one of the female doctors, in a bout of sympathy, had taught a young girl how to braid her hair in classical patterns. Either way, Sergei had seen how one of the calmest, most _human _points of Soma's day was immediately after she had performed her morning hygiene and braided her hair. At those times, her military formality almost softened with a hint of peace which lasted until she was reminded of her duty.

And so, seeking to nurture any hint of humanity within his young subordinate's mind, he has asked her to see what sort of work she could do with his hair. He had used a vague excuse of potentially needing to change his hair in the future should he ever need to connect with a domestic Indian pilot and that he had noticed her patterns and if she wouldn't mind helping teach him on this matter. She had obviously been bewildered by the unexpected request, but he had produced a reflective screen in his quarters and soon enough she had stood behind him, attempting to put his too-short hair into various patterns.

Sergei had been rewarded as well. Not just in his hair style, which Soma had skillfully managed to rearrange three, four times despite the limitations of his short hair, but in seeing Soma unwind fractionally during the exercise. She had taken off her ever-present gloves, and her calloused fingers gently threaded his strands over and under each other. Her eyes, rather than calculate the best way to break someone's neck or who could possibly present a threat, instead looked into creative possibilities. But most importantly, her shoulders and face had eased out of their customary iron-ridged posture. Her shoulders were almost relaxed as they moved the arms in non-machinelike motions, and her grim expression had softened into a not-quite-a-smile of contentment.

And with regret, Sergei had broken stopped it after a period of time. While work had been caught up on when they started, his commander-senses told him that there would always be more once he went back, and that letting a super-soldier play with his hair wouldn't be the smartest reason to neglect his duties. As soon as he had signaled for Soma to stop, her posture immediately went back to its default and her relaxation was forgotten, almost as if she was trying to reconcile that she had just been working on her superior's hair style. He had asked her to go on ahead of him while he cleared up, and now he was just finishing destroying the last proof of her work.

What kind of people would create such a child and call it ideal? Sergei rarely questioned his superiors, but this was one area in which he couldn't simply trust that those above him were better connected to the truth. He knew he would do his best to allow Soma some semblance of humanity, now he would go back to work for the very people who had made her this way.

At some point, something would have to change.

Stage 5: Anger

"I am sick and tired of all you all! You are all a bunch of idiots!"

Allelujah's hands slamming on the table only emphasized the outburst, while his eye flashed gold.

"You," his fingure pointing at Setsuna, "have done perhaps the most _moronic _move I have ever seen! You exposed yourself to complete defeat for no reason, stopping in the middle of the battlefield like that! You set up your team to lose, all on a whim! You never even bothered to consider the consequences! Idiot! If you're going to specialize in powerful melee weapons, you have to work with your teammates to cover your weaknesses!"

"Lockon!" he snarled, changing targets. "You take nothing at all seriously, and haven't demonstrated the slightest bit of leadership! You just let everyone run around aimlessly, while you yourself just charged straight up the base with pistols blazing as everyone and their mother turned to fire at you! If it weren't for your extra shielding and us, you would have died in an instant. Take charge, god damn it, and like a leader! Correct someone if they step out of line!"

"And don't you start smirking, Tieria," he said, turning to the last one. "You're no better than them. You can spam your big guns and laser all you want, but unless you learn some control you're as big a danger to us as you are to the enemy! You almost vaporized me that one time, AND you let the enemy get away! Someday an enemy will come who can beat you at your own game, and what then? Jesus-fecking-Christ!"

Silence descended on the four Meisters with the exception of heavy breathing following the outburst. Then, after a few more moments, Allelujah raised his head with a sheepish look on his face.

"I apologize for Hallelujah's outburst. He's especially a fan of this classic series, and hates to see anyone do badly at it. I'll keep him under better control, I promise."

Lockon was the first to reply. "Ah, he had a point though, so don't worry. I would have done better with a sniper rifle, but there wasn't one and so I had to stay with what I knew. You've seen my luck with grenades."

Setsuna gave an encyclopedia's worth of opinion when he softly said "My controller was unplugged, so I was fixing it."

Tieria was the only one who showed any real hint of annoyance. "Would someone remind me why we're sitting around playing a game over three hundred years old? The processing is poor, the graphics worse, and the controls are archaic. And how can there even be air on the inside of a giant ring in space?"

Stage 6: Depression

It was a pub more than a bar, a place for groups rather than individuals to come and drown their sorrows. Here and there were older, well established groups of legend. There sat the White Ghost, constantly squabbling with the Red Comet. No one talked to the newest arrivals; the unofficial hierarchy would only be set once there was a good feel as to the direction the newcomers would go.

"New" does not always mean "happy," though. Not a fifth of the way through the season, and already some of the characters were helping themselves to the variety of beverages available. Some heavily, some not so much.

Graham Acre was one of those drinking only lightly, in his case just enough to get him in a light fury. "God damn it, they still won't give up! How many times am I going to have to go over this? I… AM… NOT… GAY! It's hasn't even been two months, and they're already drawing smut of me and Billy! And, for that matter, me and Setsuna! What's next, myself and Soma? Am I going to be the pedo-manwhore of this series?" It was probably fortunate for the peace of the bar that Graham didn't notice the males of more than three other series roll their eyes and laugh at his "predicament." Graham hadn't suffered _anything _yet compared to the infamous G-Boy Fivesome.

Neither had Wang Liu Mei, who was a bit tipsy after drinking what was alleged to be apple cider. "You should add me to that list to, you know. I'm not even eighteen, so I'd fit right in. I can see it now! New doujin, straight from the perverts! "Liu Mei 'meets' Graham, the full exposure inside! What will hunky bodyguard and hunk-toy Hong Long do?" That's if I'm lucky, of course; if I'm not, I'll be checking up on every single Gundam Meister and half the male soldiers of the Human Reform League. Perverts can't even wait for me to be legal." Neither of them noticed Meer and Lacus's twin wails of anguish as the horrible memories of countless doujin welled up inside them.

Beside them Sumeragi snorted and took another sip of her gin, though whether it was hers or the bar's is a joke cliché at the making. "You think you have it bad? Felt's only fourteen, and yet her bust is bigger than most models'. And at least you get the decency to wear clothes. In seven episodes, I went from a full-body space suit to not having a shirt top worth the name! Fanservice is one thing, but I'm being turned into the next "Captain Earthquake-joyjoy!"" From across the bar, female captains from across the multiverse looked up at the sound of their name.

Dark laughter cut off Sumeragi. Unlike the others, Patrick was the definition of wasted. He staggered, in the space of an hour he looked like he hadn't slept for a week, and at the rate he was going the bar's owner would be a millionaire by age thirty. To make matters worse, rumor had it that even Jerid Messa had refused to drink with Patrick, despite the general 'rival alliance' mentality of gundam rivals and antagonists. "At least you get script and face time! I've showed up a grand total of four times, and every time I'm a joke! I'm the best in the AEU, and yet while Flag-boy here gets to duel with the Gundam, I get to be my own Team Rocket every episode! Heck, even the President of the Union gets more lines and face time than me!" He likely would have gone on longer, but a well aimed throw from (H)Allelujah put him to sleep. Allelujah then turned back to trying to convince a slightly drunk Sergei that he was not about to try and take advantage of Soma, who was likely the soberest person in the pub.

Graham turned his attention to his other side, where Setsuna had been drinking his own 'cider' quietly for the last several minutes. "How about you, my dear rival? How have they messed with you so far?" After seeing Patrick go down, Graham was almost giddy with drink.

Setsuna looked up from his mug, and then looked back down.

"They had me kill my parents." He looked up again, and looked Graham in the eye. "Do you think that will get me laid by an older girl? I heard that good things happen if you kill some girl's family, but I'm not so sure what happens if it's your own…"

Graham, Liu Mei and Sumeragi all looked at each other and nodded. Compared to Setsuna, their problems for the moment were minor.

Stage Seven: Acceptance

It was strange how easily they had come to depend on each other, despite the unnatural and completely random nature of their relationship. He was man, the hero of his nation, sworn to capture her so that she could be taken apart, piece by piece. She was machine, a "she" only in the vaguest sense of the word and data compilation, and one whose mission was literally hard coded into her. And furthermore, she wasn't even ihis/i machine, though he was assigned to capture her and had joked of falling for her before they had been stuck together. It had only been by chance they had "met," if two people of different forms of existence could really meet. He had been unconscious while having his implants updated, and she had been separated from her mainframe and chased throughout the system by the primitive AIs every nation used. She had escaped pursuit by hiding, but when Graham had woken up, he had found her, the Exia, in his mind.

At first, she had forced his compliance to keep her presence hidden by blackmail, holding his senses and life hostage to her control. She had intended to force him to return her to her mainframe. He had been resolved to see to it that she was removed and annihilated piece by piece, and that he would stand there as it was done. But when they had both realized that both would die if either was removed, an uneasy relationship had formed, known only to the observant Billy Katagiri. While Graham sought even harder to capture the Gundam, Exia could not let anyone get a hold of her mainframe, even reduced to a marionette as it was without her. But she could not let Graham die, and Graham had to see to her well being as well, and mutual dependence forced understanding. And understanding slowly changed the two of them, and grew into more.

Slowly, he came to accept and even rely on her updates and her advice in battle, and the improvements she had given his Flag so that he would not die as he sortied against both gundams and other mobile suits alike. And slowly, the Gundam Sentient AI became less concerned with taking every advantage of her situation for intelligence, and connected with the Union pilot in a fashion her previous one had been ill-suited for. Graham stopped being her host, she stopped being a parasite, and together they became greater than the sum of their parts.

And now, as she stands (Floats? Exists?) before the Veda supercomputer, the one force on Earth that can separate the two of them, as Graham lays vulnerable, unconscious, on a cold metal bed, she finds herself refusing her god, her creator, refusing to abandon her host if it costs his life. Her previous existence has become obsolete; her role in the gundam has been replaced in her absence, and her recovery is now a luxury, not a necessity. In fact, her existence has become a threat should she refuse as she does now. Her home (home is where the heart is) is elsewhere now, with him. And in her so-human, and yet so-alien mind, she wonders when they came to accept each other so.

END

Different inspirations for each stage of grief, which I'll quickly summarize.

Inspiration 1: I asked myself, "what would be the absolute worst thing that could happen to Graham at this point in the series?"

2: Been looking to throw in a "Setsuna steals Saji's girl," and the chance to make a poke at Heero Yui's magic pockets was too much.

3: Based on a real account of a hospital, where someone got so upset over not being able to have real food actually had to be sedated

4: Papa Bear Sergei and Soma. What's not to like? Also partially motivated by urlforums./showthread.php?t26353&page108this/url.

5: Should be obvious, unless you live under a rock. Begins with a Hey, ends with a low...

6: Complaints of the cast. Hm, does sexual harassment seem like a trend?

7: Awkward; I was remembering "Metropolis" vaguely, and was wondering how a Graham-Exia (artificial intelligence) pairing could possibly work after hearing Graham (jokingly?) declare his love for the Gundam. Clearly, a cyborg/AI was the only possibility while keeping it Gundam-like and not total AU. An alternate universe idea I might explore in the future, and likely my attempt at the genre of impossible loves. (And totally uncannon to boot. :D)


	9. Too Much TV

A pitiful attempt of humor, made funny only by the realization that I don't watch it, and have never seen more than a glimpse of any of these.

Some of these make more sense if you remember the episode it was written after.

--

00 Channel Flipping

_IE: Don't rip off modern television, especially if you don't watch it._

--

24

… _Christina walks into a dark room. Inside is a chair with restraints, occupied by a young man of Middle Eastern descent. He is already bloody, and in front of him is Tieria. Tieria looks up, and puts down the drill that he had just turned on._

"He isn't talking yet, but don't worry. I'm about to get serious," _foreboding look_, "and soon he'll be telling me everything. I'll _make_ him talk."

"Tieria, why are you doing this? Sumeragi and Veda deduced to location of the bomb as soon as we found out about it."

_A look of annoyance flitters on Tieria's face_. "They could be wrong. Do you really want to risk it, going easy on people like this? The lives of millions are at stake, after all."

_Christina sighs._ "The two of them have never been wrong before, Tieria, and Allelujah is recovering the bomb as we speak. The city is safe. Geeze, you're such a sicko." _Christina walks out, closes the soundproof door._

"I don't understand why she was seen fit to be a part of Celestial Being." _A shrug, and Tieria picks up the drill and turns back towards Setsuna…_

--

Generic Soaps

"Last week on "Love in Space," Christina was astonished at the declaration of love from her crewmate at the Ptolemaios, the cheerful helmsman Lichtendahl Caeli. However, what he didn't know was of Christina's unrequited love for her personal hero, Allelujah, who is currently entranced by the mysterious Indian girl Soma Peiris, who is the charge of the protective Sergei Smirnov.

At the same time, though, thoughts of Setsuna linger on Marina's mind even as she struggles to support her nation, but what does the appearance of the handsome Alejandro Corner mean for this recently seeded relationship? And what will happen to the relationship of Louise and Saji, now that her mother has arrived to drive the two apart? And what role will Lockon's twin play in his relationship with the young Felt?"

--

Jerry Springer

Scheduled guests.

Live coverage of the relationship between a older man who accuses his much younger girlfriend of cheating him and getting pregnant, despite her protests that he is the father of her baby. Look forward to the unveiling of the DNA test, and the shocking appearance of the man's identical twin!

Then, the tale of an upper-class mother who accuses her daughter's boyfriend (of humble origins) of molesting her daughter, even though the young man denies touching her and the girl protests that it was only because the two are in love with each other. How will they react when the boy's sister shows up and demands that he takes responsibility for his actions and marry the girl?

--

Survivor

The Pre-Vote Opinions as Team CB Votes a Member Off

Sumeragi: While I admit I was outmaneuvered by Sergei, I think we would have done better had our lookout done his job better.

Christina: I know I freaked out back there, but being surprised by Team HRL was not my fault!

Felt: …Lockon…

Caeli (the lookout): Yeah, I was asleep at the switch. That doesn't mean I have to vote for myself, though, does it?

Allelujah: Personally, I think we all screwed up back there, and it can't be blamed on anyone of us. Did you see the way I went out of control back there? Man, did Tieria get on my case for that…

Tieria: I think it's clear now that I'm the only one who deserves to be on the team. I keep telling people when they disgrace themselves, but they refuse to change. Setsuna was completely useless out there.

Lockon: We would have done much better had I been able to shoot well. I blame the haro mechanics.

Haro mechanics: Haro! Haro! Tieria kicked us!

Setsuna: …I am Gundam…

And so the votes were tallied:

Haro mechanics: 1

Setsuna: 1

Caeli: 2

Tieria: 5

Tieria: WTF? That doesn't even make sense!

--

And don't miss our other programs for this week!

"Crib" is going to visit the mansion of idol Wang Liu-Mei, but watch as we try and escape the gaze of her constant hunk companion and find ourselves her legendary secret rooms!

In "Pimp My Ride," Master Sergeant Dutch proves that he's black by tackling the ride of his homedog Graham, who wants something better than his old-fashioned Union Flag, while Ali Al Sarshes is going to get a taste of what an Enact can really do once it goes through the hood. Don't forget to tune in and watch the stereotypes at work!

And on Friday at eleven, turn in to Fox News where the beautiful Marina Ismail and expert Shirin Bakhtiar tell what to think, and how to think it, about the wonderful Middle Eastern country of Azadistan, the perfect place for you to invest!


	10. Five Mighty Angels

This was the end result of the Gundam Capture Mission episode, where we had seen all five gundams. Since all the character code names/gundam names are loaded with meaning of some sort, I thought I'd define them and then then blend them. There was some speculation involved: I was completely wrong about the nature of (H)Allelujah.

I'd like to say that I received much help from Blacknight (not on ffn), who has my thanks even if he didn't require them, while also noting that any bad writing is my own and not his, and that while the definitions/declinations I gave are rough and slightly off, they were meant to capture the spirit of the idea rather than the exact linguistic meanings.

But yeah, the idea was for 5 themed sentence groups, where the meaning of the pilot was linked to the meaning of the Gundam. I have mixed thoughts of the result, but am glad of the concept.

And as a side note, I've finally discovered a need to disable the allerts after my mailbox was suddenly filled with nine review alerts in a row, along with the normal junk and business mail. Way to go, hero. (That was sarcasm, nudge nudge wink wink.)

Oh, and I also recently realized that I had been blocking anonymous reviews. That has been changed. I don't know why, but if you've been reading this but haven't had a chance to glorify/chastise me with reviews because you were too lazy/unable to log in or don't have an account, and you feel some desire to inflate my review count... well, I suppose I should say thanks?

Anyway's, here the mini-fic.

--

Gundam 00 Episode 10

Five Mighty Angels

GN-001 Exia

_Exousiai: Powers; the Sixth Ranking Order of Angle. Sometimes credited to having been the first Order created by God. Subordinate only to God Himself, they are tasked with keeping the Universe in balance._

_Also: "Power of Choice," "To Have," "To Have Freedom to Act"_

Setsuna F. Seiei

_Seiei: Roughly to shatter, one who shatters. _

It is his purpose, his last meaning for existence. It allows him to change the world. It has given him complete freedom to act as he sees fit, despite what his superiors desire. But can one who shattered his own family obey the plan with such power at his fingertips?

GN-002 Dynames

_Dynamis: Virtues. The class of Angels that lie beyond the Throne._

_Also: Strength (of Armies), Power (of miracles)_

Lockon Stratos

_Lockon: to target_

_Stratos: Army, General_

With it, he had the power of his namesake. With it, he could reach out and touch someone. But with great power comes great responsibility, and a leader's greatest responsibility is the safety of his command. To protect those he cares about, he will need more Strength. To end all conflict, he will need more Power.

GN-003 Kyrios

_Kyriotetes: Dominions. The order of angels tasked with overseeing other angels; the angels who preside over the fate of nations._

_Also: Lord, Master, One Who Controls Something_

Allelujah Haptism

_(H)Allelujah: Praise the Lord/Master_

_Haptism: Baptism; Ritual purification; the cleansing of sins_

Agree, they can not. Compromise, they will not. Unify, they may not. Two paths diverge from a single mind, but a baptism of blood will purge the weaker. Who will be Master? Who will forfeit control? And who will oversee these two in their struggle?

GN-004 Nadleeh

_Nadleeh: Navaho spiritual men, with feminine characteristics. Important and respected, with connotations of transgender._

_Tieria Erde_

_Erde: Earth_

It was almost magic, the way she had turned the tables on his captors. But now he is left inside of her as her Virtue coverings surround them, and he is forced to face his inner confusion. What is he now? Is he fit to be a Gundam Meister? _"Ore wa... Boku wa... Watashi wa..."_

GN-005 Virtue

_Virtue: Virtues. The class of Angels that lie beyond the Throne._

_Also: Strength (of Armies), Power (of miracles)_

_Tieria Erde_

_Erde: Earth_

He was a mountain: powerful, resolute, unmoving, and uncompromising. So why was he as weak as them? Why was he just as unfit as those whose virtues wavered?


	11. Ten Thoughts of Sumeragi

Because at the time, I really didn't like Allelujah/the HRL as a whole for some reason, and so they tended to get shafted in terms of screen time in my drabbles. I actually set aside one episode to give them a good amount of time, but alas that was one of the episode drabbles I never finished.(What? I'm lazy to, and after a point I had no motivation to fill in the two episodes I had missed. With the disadvantage of knowing how the rest of the series goes, it actually gets harder.)

So, a10 thoughts from a very not-lighthearted episode.

--

Gundam 00 Episode 11

10 Thoughts: Sumeragi

1. Zero-G

Space was a wonderful place: materials impossible to manufacture in gravity could form with ease, an infinite expanse of space with an infinite supply of energy to mold it, and an infinite amount of possibilities. Oh, and where else could beer form a perfect sphere in the middle of the air?

2. Back Support

Space is also said to be very good for the health (until your bones get weak), and Sumeragi would agree if asked. Nowhere else would she be able to curl a hundred pounds, and in space she never has back problems from holding her chest up straight.

3. Crush

One of the things she'd been expecting upon boarding the Ptolemy was to become the center of the male crew's attention. She was mostly pleased when she found out otherwise, though it was fun to tease Allelujah at times. (Setsuna was a lost cause, she had long realized. Not even a peek from him.)

4. Maniacal

For something as imposing and all-knowing as Veda, it was awfully boring. What was the point of planning in scheming the fate of nations in a hidden room in her room on the ship if you didn't do it in dim lighting over a chessboard?

5. Jealousy

As Christina stretched and attempted to ask Allelujah to put suntan lotion on her back, Sumeragi could just _feel _the undercurrent of jealousy coming from the girl as the Meister gawked at the strategic planner.

6. True Sight

Whenever anyone asked how Sumeragi could predict so accurately after seeing the data, she would just shrug. For her, the data translated itself into lines and patterns to be followed. It was just that simple to her.

7. Responsibility

Having worked in the Union military, she knew how strange her position was; she was neither captain nor combat coordinator, and had no real authority over the individual meisters. At most she was an adviser, and yet when plans failed it was she who took responsibility beyond her due.

8. Bitter

He asked why she drank something so bitter. The answer was simple. So long as that taste remained in her mouth, she would never forget the feeling of that day so long ago.

9. Memory

Sumeragi is blessed with a brilliant mind. It is the kind of mind that can understand complex math immediately, has an innate understanding for the complexities of human interaction, and the ability to use logic and reason without driving itself insane. And worst of them all, it was the kind that will never let her forget anything, no matter how much drink she partakes.

10. Torture

In her mind, perfect prediction is the greatest curse one can have. It means that the result of every miscalculation is clear long before the disaster befalls, and it means that there is no hope that the horrors will never happen again.


	12. Composition

Blatantly my own thoughts on part of fallacy of Celestial Being. How do you stop a conflict when you don't know the who, what, when, where, or why of it in the first place?

--

Gundam 00 Episode 12

Composition

Who causes the war? Is it the militants who kidnap a local authority, inflaming tensions? But like soldiers, they too take their directions from a higher authority, and in their case it is the highest.

What starts the war? Is it the mercenary who carries out the first strike? But a mercenary only exists when the conditions already call for them, and won't act unless someone else pays them.

When does the war start? Is it in the first exchange of fire that breaks the latest peace? But in an area with a history of centuries of intrigue, interference, and violence, can it really have been said that there was a peace in the first place?

Where does the war start? Is it the first base to be attacked, or the city streets that once again burn red with blood and fire? Or is it the corridors in faraway lands, where instructions are given to attack to one man and to defend to another?

Why does the war start? Was it arranged in those corridors for that man to launch that attack in that place over that figure in order to achieve that prize or goal? Or is there another force involved?

There is no war because there was no peace. What there is is a confused and bloody conflict in which no one knows the pieces. A conflict with no perpetrator, no start and no location or time, and worst of all no reason. Only smoke and gunfire and the corpses, who are the only ones to know the truth.


	13. Two Conversations That Never Happened, 1

An experiment with another form of conversation. I wrote two separate drabbles for episode 13: the only episode I did that for. Both are conversations I thought could well have happened.

--

Gundam 00 Episode 13: Two Talks That Never Happened.

Why do are you helping me?

To put an end to conflict.

There is violence around the country, but I am just one man. How could you have found me?

Many people were looking for you. Your followers, the Princess, and even the Union. They all sought to find you safely.

The Union!? The United Nations was controversial enough, but what drove the Princess to involve them?

She did not. The Reformists asked for Union protection to insure that the government would not be overthrown, and did so without letting her know. They have, however, prevented your followers from storming the Palace.

What foolish children… doing so would not have helped our nation…

Do not blame them harshly. Hopeless people will do desperate actions, and the man who did this to you has done it to the past.

You know him?

He has done it to men, women, and children. He is most dangerous to those who trust him or those who don't know him.

And to you?

…yes.

Then I shall ask no more…

Are you well?

…I fasted while held captive…

…here. We took precautions. This is bread and water purchased locally. Eat and drink.

Thank you. But what will Celestial Being do next?

We end this conflict by returning you. And then we will continue our interventions, until no more causes of conflicts remain.

You realize that using force to end wars is a hopeless paradox, and that God will not forgive hypocracy.

We feel we must try anyway.

And you know that this will not change my denunciations of your actions. By my duty, I must not be a man affected by personal emotions.

We understand that to. We do not ask that to be loved. We only seek the end of conflict.

…

We are approaching the palace. Be prepared.

But also as a man of the cloth, I must thank you on behalf of our people, all of them. Thank you.

Then end this conflict.


	14. Two Conversations That Never Happened, 2

Another conversation that very well could have happened behind the scenes after episode 13. I forget why I decided to write two shots for one episode, but I did like the mix of bold, regular, and italic font to denote different speakers without resorting to "he", "she," and other pronouns.

I was off in regards to what would happen in the next episode, but not by much. (I was expecting a two-power alliance, not all three.)

--

**I disagree. He may not have captured a gundam, but that was through no fault of his own. He had conflicting orders, and acted in our nation's best interest every time. **

Our nation's "best interest" is to capture a gundam, so that we can take its technology into our own. He had two opportunities the like of which we've never had before, and he squandered them!

_As much as I hate agreeing with my friend in uniform there, the soldier in question did the proper action. As the man on the spot, he acted to fulfill our agreement with Azadistan and insured that the government was not overthrown. We have increased our credibility in the region, and that can only help us in the future. We will have another chance._

He had a Gundam completely still the first time, and the second time one was entirely unarmed! Two regular Flags and one of our Custom designs could have easily captured it. At either point, capturing a gundam would have been worth the diplomatic costs.

**You have looked too much at the surface of things, then. While it's true that to our knowledge Acre is the only pilot to have ever engaged the sniper in close combat, that is no guarantee that he would have won. The gundam had discarded its rifle and taken out its short range guns, and was still entirely undamaged. There was no guarantee. And had not clue as to where the sniper was during the hostage return. In all likelihood, trying to capture the sword gundam would have led to our taskforce being shot out of the sky. **

_Besides, do you really believe that they would risk a Gundam when they could have just turned the man over somewhere else? They were making a political statement, and had we appeared around the world to have not only destroy the chance for peace, but to also have failed to capture a Gundam, our leadership of the Union would have been endangered. Ever since Celestial Being intervened in Moralia, President Brian has given us all strict orders not to inflame anti-American sentiments anywhere, especially with our strengthened presence in South America as of late._

Your state department people are all the same. There is going to be anti-American propaganda any, and yet you take baby step around what could make it all irrelevant. Tsch.

_That's because we know that we can't escape the consequences of screwups, unlike you people who think that any Intelligence screw up can just be hidden and forgotten._

**Gentlemen! Save your inter-agency sniping untill after we finish this report for the President. Now tell us, any progress made in regards to the Human Reform League?**

Yes. We were surprised when they approached us, but with President Brian's permission we may have a joint operation in, if not the next few weeks, within a few months. Rough terms have already been agreed, and what remains is more detailed-oriented.

**Such as?**

_This is more of the State Department's area. Roughly, we both agree that should a gundam be destroyed or capture during an operation in which both parties have made real assistance, we will share data and research on the gundam in joint research labs. Besides some safeguards to prevent one from withholding Gundam data from the other, we also agree to not share the data with the Advanced European Union and other proofs of good intent. Some of these have already gone into effect; we have already shifted support for Siri Lanka rebels over to the European espionage networks, and the amount of propaganda and aid for anti-American groups in South America has already reduced. Of course neither of us will entirely stop what we think we can get away with, but that is typical._

**Good. I'll make sure that gets into the briefing. For the final piece of business: any remaining objections for keeping the current status of the Anti-Gundam taskforce in regards to pilot Graham Acre?**

_None here. I suggest that a note recognizing his decisions in keeping and improving our relations with Azadistan be placed in his service jacket. From the state department view, he made the best decisions._

I don't agree with that, but I won't argue that he has become our Gundam expert, being the source of most of our data and information about the Gundams. And that our investigators have found no hints of foreign influence over him or any of his peers.

**Consider both of those duly noted. I might also remind everyone that he is to date the only man we know of to have survived three sorties against the Gundams without being shot down. His experiences and anti-gundam tactics are already being taught to select pilots across the Union. We haven't had many engagements with Celestial Being, but we also seem to be having a better combat rate than most. I will also not that in the appropriate report. Now, does anyone have any other issues to bring up? No? Then I call this meeting over.**


	15. A Really Bad Attempt at Symbolic Combat

My first, and likely last, attempt towards anything approaching actual combat. Feel free to forget this.

Please.

--

00 Drabble 14

Like two birds, they circled each other at increasing altitudes seeking aerial dominance. Both birds had weapons far more lethal than any talon, though, and as they flew in circles each sought to bring his to bear against the other. Though either could have assumed human form to advantage of a shorter turn radius, they were already at an altitude where doing so would force the one to change to plumet back towards the Earth, helpless.

More or less evenly matched they were. While the black eagle was likely stronger and faster, it could not bring its weight to bear against the darting hawk. Closer and closer their circle became as they reached their uppermost limit. Engines stalling, for a moment they stood above the curved horizons of the Earth, masters of all they surveyed. And then, as if by mutual agreement, they transformed into men.

They plummeted, and once again moved in circles. This time, however, streams of fire raced between the two. The eagle was the first to fire its massive rifle, but the hawk flittered to and fro, avoiding the slug as it flew past at speeds no man could survive at. The hawk retaliated with its own rifle, firing a stream of rapid ammo, but the eagle's power took form as it raced below and under the hawk, before jetting up with its massive thrusters, halting its fall while baring its talon.

The hawk had been rotating as its foe flew under, and with the grace of an acrobat merely somersaulted in place to avoid the heated slash from beneath. Another summersault almost saw a lightning fast kick to the eagle's head, but by then the eagle had withdrawn, and the two birds of prey saw themselves once again circling, but this time in freefall.

Blast after blast was shot between the two, but with the ability of birds and the form of men none came close to hitting. The hawk managed all number of evasions, rolling and spinning to avoid the shots by hair lengths. The eagle was not nearly as fancy, but its massive wings and its pilot's defiance of the forces involved allowed it to evade with a single surge of energy.

Again and again they closed in, using any manner of tricks to attempt to land a blow of any sort. The hawk used its shield to close in towards the eagle despite a close shot, but the eagle transformed and pointed all its force down, nearly stopping its decent. The pilot nearly blacked out, but his will carried him through as he now shot at the hawk from straight above. The hawk used its own human body to slow its own descent while flying through the shots, and soon the two were once again on even level, plummeting towards the sea below.

None could say who paid mind to the surface first, with how involved they both were. But soon their trading of shots slowed, and stopped. There would be no need; one would have to break off first, and the one who did so last would come out behind the other, assuming both did not die. Twelve thousand rolled into eleven thousand. Soon, all the thrust of their human forms would be as nothing.

The eagle moved first, perhaps in part due to the knowledge that it wouldn't be able to make as sharp a turn as the hawk on the ground. Transforming into its flight mode, it angled for the sharpest descent it could make, using its powerful thrust to counter the pull of gravity. The hawk followed, its slower speed but sharper turn allowing it to fall behind the eagle at a height mere meters above the surface of the waves below, though the forces affected the pilot much more than the eagle's.

It was likely because of this that the eagle was able to pull its trap. Transforming into its man shape once again, it let loose a steady volley of bullets and tracers from its anti-personnel gun. While such a gun was too small to damage even the hawk, its sudden appearance did something even better; it startled the hawk. Already dangerously low, the instinctive movement to dive was enough. To the hawk's credit, only the skill of its pilot saved it from instant destruction. Transforming into man form, a single leg grazed the top of a wave. The machine began to tumble, hitting the other wave and tearing off the entire other leg. Just as the hawk was about to crash into the sea in a burst of flame, a sudden shock hit it in the body; the eagle had grabbed it and was lifting from its doom.

The hawk was silent, sullen, as the eagle carried it back to its floating nest. No attack could possibly be made against its savior, no matter how humiliating. Just the opposite, if anything. As the hawk was lowered onto the flat metal nest, the eagle watched smugly as tiny figures raced forward to aid its beleaguered foe. The contest had been decided, the outcome undeniable.


	16. The Halls of Power, 2

Another attempt at a conversation in the halls of power. Same characters as last time, but a different format. I like the bold/italics/plain style of last time better myself, even if standard form does lend itself to descriptions more easily.

* * *

00 Drabble 15

Three men sat around a table once again, as they did every week. Unlike their last meeting, however, a march darker mood had settled among them.

"God _damnit_, how many of these monsters are there?" A raw, undirected fury could be felt underlining the words from the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. "We were _this _close to capturing a gundam! Celestial Being was almost wiped out, and out of Lucifer's ass come more?"

"As far as we know, these are all they have. Nothing indicates any more after these. It's interesting to note that whereas their first set was of four, only three have arrived in this wave. That likely points to a limitation of resources on their part." The Secretary of Security, the formal title of the United States' spymaster, was the second calmest man in the room despite the magnitude of the recent events.

The calmest man was the Secretary of State, though rumors were already abounding that he might retire in the near future; he had been an outspoken advocate of the joint assault. "More importantly, we have shown that Celestial Being _can_ be beaten with ample preparation. We will see them defeated yet. Besides," he said with a hint of a smirk, "now no one can argue that building the energy pipeline to the Western Pacific never had any uses. How else would we have gotten our foot into the door there? At least the Europeans can claim some bases from former colonies, unlike us. Japan proved it's worth as part of the Union."

The Chairman was not amused by the attempt at levity, and refused to take his attention off the topic at hand. "We did not beat Celestial Being's Gundams; we beat their pilots by waiting for them to pass out. Any fool with enough missiles and men could have done that. We are at a critical disadvantage at all fields. These Gundams surpass our suits in every way conceivable; they are faster, stronger, more accurate, and not one was even seriously damaged during the entire operation. Together the old four could take out entire single armies; now these new three appear to be even more powerful. Just look at these!"

He indicated an open folder with reports of the latest machines; one of the few benefits from the new arrivals was how they had spurred all three powers to frantically compare notes on the new machines.

"Remote-control multi-directional weapons. A mere mobile beam-cannon who's output our Gundam investigators haven't even begun to estimate. A machine that excels in all fields imaginable. Before, Celestial Being could conquer a small country in a day. Now, they could conquer the world in a month."

"Do you think that's their goal now? Having reduced minor conflicts already with force and the threat of force, that they will conquer everyone and use their reputation to keep everyone docile?" The Secretary of Security was often regarded as a touch paranoid, and rightfully so. It kept his mind focused on his job, which is why President Brian had kept him from the previous Administration.

"No," said the Chief of Staff, coming down from his earlier emotion. "Even if they blew up every mobile suit and every factory in the world, they'd still need an occupation army to keep order and to make sure taxes were collected and whatnot. Though for all I know, wherever their factory that produced these latest monsters also has some giant cloning vault that's in its final stages."

"Cloning soldiers is impossible; you know that. The defects that make them dye so quickly will require another century and a half of research to overcome, at least."

"Will it? Really?" The unsaid question was simple; isn't Celestial Being over a century ahead of us in other fields?

The Secretary of State looked at the Chairman with pity. His anger was the outward sign of despair, and the Secretary understood. Though they differed often and loudly on the means, both he and the Chairman wanted the same thing; to keep the country and the Union strong and healthy, and thereby keep the people safe. But two oceans and friendly neighbors were no match for the power of Celestial Being and its new Gundams.

"We don't have to worry about clones, at least. While we have tracked down the engineers who we presume helped Celestial Being in the last centuries, there have been no comparative disappearances in geneticists and biologists in the last few centuries. At most, they will have rudimentary gene manipulation in the style of the Human Reform League's project, so that is one nightmare scenario we will not have to worry about. Besides," and here was the point to make an upbeat note, "we have several consolations in our favor."

The Chairman looked up from his depression, and the Secretary of Security looked to see what the State Department's view on the situation was going to be.

"Item: this was not a public conflict as Moralia or PMC Trust were. Only those in the government know about it, and while undoubtedly someone will talk, all the governments in the Union had been in agreement about this operation. Nothing much was lost from our member nations that a few shipments of aid and replacement mobile suits can't salve. Politically, this will be a non-issue in most of the media across the Union, and likely in the other powers as well. All things considered, our causalities were lighter than even Moralia, not least because of indirect bombardment being relied on."

"Item: This has been our best evaluation of anti-gundam tactics to date, and was a success in those terms. By all accounts from the other powers, anti-pilot measures will prove to be our best bet against Celestial Being. Plasma fields, electricity, and energy fields that effect the pilots as much as the machine will be looked into. We also fielded and proved the effectiveness of our cluster-missiles against stealth objects; even though we can not track them with conventional means, our cluster area bombardments are confirmed to have repeatedly hit the Gundams, and even to have damaged the sniper's ability to fly. We were able to field a variety of weapons and ideas here, and have learned accordingly."

"Item: cooperation with the other powers is going to greatly increase after this fiasco. The Human Reform League has been making the noises of a joint-alliance for some time now, but now we may actually see something come of that. Data-sharing is likely to increase, and there have even been rumors of actually joint-operations, rather than merely staying out of each others way. The Over Flags Unit is likely to be the first to fly training missions with the Human Reform League's own elite."

"And final item: we know of the presence and some of the abilities of the new gundams. Clearly they were already on their way into this conflict; now we have met them and can plan against them. We can plan against them, and act accordingly. We may never be able to bring this kind of force together again in one place, but now we know what we are up against." Even the Secretary of Security nodded at the assessment.

"But what," the Chairman asked, open despair finally escaping into his voice, "does knowing what they are matter if they can beat us all? We could barely beat the old ones; the only force with a hope against these new Gundams is Celestial Being itself!"


	17. Afterquake

I like this one very much. A pity that too much of it was ripped from books I read long ago but no longer remember which they are.

--

Gundam 00 17

After-quake

--

As always, there was a knock on the door. It was the firm but respectful knock of someone who would enter, but rather not be rude about it. Graham looked up from the datasheet he was staring at.

"Come in."

Admiral Abrahms of the USS Reagan entered. Graham rose to salute the highest ranking officer of the carrier force, but the Captain waved him back down.

"You look like shit. When did you last sleep?" The commander of the carrier was a notoriously honest but blunt man, which was a testament to his ability to have been able to rise to the ranks of Admiral despite his seeming lack of diplomacy. But here he was correct; Graham's eyes were graced with hideous black bags, his eyes were bloodshot, and his skin told of a grievous lack of sunlight in recent days.

Graham didn't even try to evade the question. "I think I passed out for an hour. I didn't want to sleep until I finished these." He gestured to six datasheet screens on the table; three of them were filled with text describing the final heroism of their subjects, but two stood bleakly blank.

Abrahms looked at the sheets and understood their purpose, but the exact number…

"I was told you lost five pilots."

Graham chuckled darkly. "I'm currently writing Mason's, but the last one isn't an Overflag, sir. He was our top engineer, killed in the attack."

Abrahms took the seat that was silently offered. "You knew him?"

Graham didn't say anything for a moment. "I felt he should have someone who knew him right for him. He had no family left, which isn't too surprising at his age, but he did have a close friend and I owe it to him for not being there. A minute earlier…"

Abrahams saw the survivor's guilt, as he had expected to. "You were there a minute earlier; several in fact. Don't think I don't know how you pushed your flag into dangerously low energy levels to get there when you did. It's a miracle you were able to fight the new Gundams, let alone land afterwards. "

Graham didn't change his expression, suppressing a flinch. "Some of us didn't. And I take full responsibility for pushing the energy levels to the point they were for us to get there when we did. The hard landings were my fault, not those of my men."

Abrahams shook his head. "Don't you worry about that. No one is going to complain about a busted suspension after that fight, all things considered. Keeping a Flag in one piece will be considered praise-worthy, not a sin.

Graham sighed. "That one piece of good news I've heard today, at least. Thank you, sir. What else did you want to tell me?"

"I also came to let you know that you won't have to write Lieutenant Mason's letter."

Graham looked at Abrahms as if he had grown a third eye. In cautious tones fighting back rage, Graham said, "Sir? If that was a joke, it was in bad taste. I saw what happened to him, right before I cut the bastard's arm off."

"That's not what I meant. I apologize." Abrahms rarely apologized unless he believed he had made a mistake. "What I meant was that, according to his testament, the one we are supposed to alert in the case of his death is _you_."

Graham blinked his red eyes in bewilderment.

"Lieutenant Mason has no close family left, you see. Nothing closer than a few distant cousins he likely never met. His instructions dictate that in the case of his death, his friends are to be alerted and his savings will allocated into a trust fund for sponsoring the education for their children. Incidentally, most of the names on his list are either on this ship or have passed on. You are the only one left to officially inform." Abrahms searched through his coat pocket. "Unofficially, he also left a note in case he didn't come back that left you these, in case you ever needed them yourself." He held out a black glasses case to Graham. Inside were Mason's glasses that he never wore while flying.

Graham took the item and bowed his head. "Mason…"

Abrahms stood up. "I know you are taking this hard, Commander. It's not easy to lose so many for so few results, and it losing most of your squadron in two missions against these machines is a terrible blow. But you have done something no one has done yet; you wounded a gundam, and one of the new ones at that. And more importantly, you interfered with their operation."

Graham looked up. "Are you saying…"

Abrahams looked at him with no expression. "I am saying nothing. I can say nothing because there is nothing to know. But I will say that if you lost the entire squadron for the same results as today, it would have been considered equally a triumph. That is not only my opinion, but the opinion from the very top as well. This comes from the President himself." A blue ribbon with white stars, a gold eagle holding a five-point star with "valor" written above it. The highest award possible for any service member.

Abrahms withdrew the medal. "It will go in your service jacket once the formalities are through, though it will be classified for some time. Write your final letter, Commander, and get some sleep. The Union needs as many of us alive and well as it can get. Write your letter, and if you aren't done within an hour I have ordered the ship doctor to sedate you." Abrahms sketched a salute to Graham, and without waiting for a return of military courtesy he left the surprised pilot behind.

Graham sat there. The surprise faded, but a more important task remained to be done. He turned back to his last datasheet, and sought words that refused to come easily. When the doctor entered an hour later, he saw Graham collapsed in front of his station. Pulling a blanket over the young officer's shoulders, he quietly exited the room and turned off the lights.

The door closed, and no one ever saw Graham shift and let out a soft "Thanks, Billy…" before falling back into a deep slumber.

--

_Graham's flag stood, no longer able to hover, over the burning remains of the jeep at the edge of the jungle. Even as the energy levels dimmed the screen to near black, the image of the tattered remains remained in his mind. The burning remains of the base and its defenders were in the background, as was the fiery tombs of over half the Overflags who had flown this horrific mission. Mason, who had died defending both his commander and the enemy's target, was closest. His flag, ignobly strewn across the ground in an obscene arrangement of legs and arms, had stopped burning shortly after the last blow was finally delivered. The only meaning in the resolution was the severed mobile suit hand that lay hidden beneath its face in a grotesque caress, and the rest of the arm that lay in front of it._

_Part of Graham's mind grieved for his lost friend at the same time that it was honored that Mason would sacrifice himself for him and overjoyed that the Overflag had been the first to undeniably damage a Gundam. But the rest of Graham's mind was focused on the former passengers of the jeep which had been fleeing the Gundams. Neither was visible at the moment, and even though a medical vehicle was being pushed in the direction by one of the remaining Overflags, he couldn't bring himself to look closer for the bodies._

_"Damn it, Billy." His voice betrayed no anger, no sorrow, not even real frustration. "Why couldn't you have gotten him out without being seen?"_

_The Overflags had arrived just in time to prevent the first strike against MSWAD, and immediately a fierce battle had resulted even as the base defenses scrambled. Already down three men from their last mission, Graham had been shocked to hear Billy's voice over the tactical radio, telling Graham to prevent the Gundams from attacking him as he escorted their real target, Professor Eifman, to safety._

_"Or at least have done so without letting me know?"_

_Granted, there was no proof that the Gundams had been listening to the secure channel, but their constant focus on the Professor's ride had been unerring. While the Overflags had been capable of slowing the mobile suits themselves, their attacks had not been so easy. More than one Overflag had lost his rotor-shield to a beam blast, and all chaos had broken out when that one Gundam had let out its radical kinetic missiles. Three of the five dead Overflags and a dozen local mobile suits had met their end at those missiles, though Mason's heroism had been to literally catch and disable one of them by smashing the engine part against the ground. The mostly-intact shell was now embedded in the ground under Mason's cockpit, where it remained after it had been unable to return to its master. It lay beside the hand of the Gundam that had fired it._

_"Damn it Billy, why did you have to die? You were supposed to help me fight Celestial Being!"_

_The Union would reap a major technological windfall from this disaster; the left arm and hand of a Gundam, one of its beam weapons, and much more combat data would be worth a small country. But it would have to do so without its best mobile suit designer or its legendary scientist._

_"Now the two of you are dead!"_

_The mobile suit was finally completely out of power, and had shut down. Rather than exiting and watching the medical team perform their surely hopeless task of saving the lost, Graham stayed in his seat where no one could see him._

_"Damn it, Gundam!"_

--

It was from a secret location among secret locations. Completely isolated from the rest of the world both electronically and otherwise, its existence was now known to a bare baker's dozen. It had been made in case of a nuclear war centuries ago, but had become the hideaway hole for people too important to risk dying, especially from causes of unnatural origin.

The Secretary of State read the report from the location that did not exist. Then he burned it, as protocol dictated. Only then did he take his most secure phone and call his contemporary.

"How true is this?" All that needed to be said.

"We believe entirely. He's still wavering in and out of consciousness, but the Professor made sure to give us his complete report. The President is currently waiting for an analysis report before making a decision of what to do, but it won't be long."

"To think, Celestial Being really intends to…"

"Yes."

"Those bastards. What about the Gundam evidence?"

"Already hidden away with teams of scientists in different locations. After last week, we don't intend to give them the chance to act up and stop us in one swoop. We lost our best mobile suit engineer, but we should be on our way. We _are _on our way. Some of the data is said to have immediate implications."

"Good. And the Professor?"

"Eifmann is half-dead as it is, and lost one of his prized students. He won't mind disappearing from the world for awhile. If Celestial Being can hide scientists, so can we."

"And the other powers?"

"We're thinking about it. Intelligence may be admissible, but at this point the scientific gains are ours."

"That's good, considering what we paid for it. The entire MSWAD..." He sighed, and fell deeper into his chair. "How is the President doing? Have they made a decision?"

The other man chuckled. "You know how the Secret Service works. If it was up to them, he'd be in a steel box and buried somewhere where no one could find him. No, the President will remain where he is, by his own orders. You, the Vice-President, and the rest of the Cabinet, however… Well, I hope you like to travel. They won't be able to get all of you, at least. How does a trip to Azadistan sound?"

He winced. "Joy."

"Get packing; someone has to look at how far our new friends have gone with their solar energy production, and if you bring the slightest bit of aid they'll put an entire army to guard you. Safer than other places, at least."

"Alright, alright. I hope this entire mess finishes soon, however."

"It will be, count on it. Next election cycle, and the world will once again be a different place in regards to Celestial Being."

--

Sumeragi lay sleepless in her berth on the Ptolemous. It wasn't that the room was too bright, or too hot, or even that she hadn't been working hard analyzing data from the Gundam Thrones. But sleep had been rare of late more attune to passing out than resting. Something insider her would not stop telling her that something was _wrong_.

Then her consol beeped. She approached it slowly. A few cautious keystroke brought up an unsolicited mail that had been re-routed from her Earth account. It was from a name she knew only in passing from Billy. A glance at the opening line elicited a cry, and Sumeragi dashed to her liquor cabinet even as tears came to her eyes.

_ Sumeragi Lee Noriega, as their last witness it is my sad duty to inform you of the death of Billy Katagiri and Professor Eifman during the course of a Celestial Being attack…_


	18. Triumph

Triumph

--

"Despite the tragedy of the events over the skies of Illinois, one man did not hesitate to step forward to oppose the slaughter of civilian workers. The first prepared, he alone confronted one of the new Gundams, the very ones who have attacked and annihilated the Union MSWAD headquarters in South America, killing hundreds from every nation in the Union, all in hopes of saving the lives of his fellow Union citizens with no regard to his own safety."

Former Major, now Lieutenant Colonel, Graham Aker inwardly smiled as the President of the Union spoke his praises. It was a media circus of media circuses, but it was easy to see why. The new wave of Gundams, whose acts of assault and massacre had nearly terrified the powers into submission, was no longer as imposing as it once was. It didn't change the jaw dropping amount of interest in Graham, though he could see why the American president was portraying him as a symbol of Union unity. He was in his dress uniform, and looked felt only marginally more comfortable than Darryl Dutch did in his uniform standing beside his wife.

The American administration wasn't the only one interested in him; reporters had been trying to sneak onto the Overflag base for days now, and Graham had been the subject of any number of propositions. Billy Katagiri had laughed himself onto the ground when Master Sergeant Darryl Dutch had found one particularly daring reporter waiting inside the shower room of the men's barracks. Dutch had been elusive as to what state of dress, let alone gender, the reporter had been before being thrown out.

"In feats not seen even in the Fifth Solar War from any side, Lieutenant Colonel Aker daringly closed in with the enemy gundam. Using the full capabilities of his Union Flag, he went beyond his own physical limits and forced the enemy suit onto the defensive. Colonel Aker, in an amazing display of skill, disarmed the Gundam's beam saber, and pushing his mobile suit's capabilities to the max, proceeded to seize the dropped weapon and used it to destroy the Gundam in a single blow. Despite his body's reaction to the extreme maneuvers, Colonel Aker then went on to rally his reinforcements from his airbase and to fight off the remaining two gundams despite major casualties and injuries forcing the Colonel himself to having to land in a corn field."

That didn't do that night's terrors justice. After destroying the Gundam, Graham had fully expected to die when the other two suits had turned towards him. Vomiting blood inside his own visor while attempting evasive maneuvers had been a poor experience of both, and even after most of the base's compliment of mobile suits and even three Over Flags had died by the time the Gundams had suddenly withdrawn Graham had still almost died when he had had to put down because he was unable to even sit up correctly. Thankfully, the local farmer had been an ex-military man himself, and had quickly driven to the fallen Flag to render assistance.

"The entire Union owes this man a debt of gratitude for his actions in protecting not only us, but the entire world. It is my proud privilege, not only as the President of the Union but also as the President of the nation to produce this hero, to bestow upon him the Star of Valor, the highest award possible in the Union. Please bow."

Camera men and women crowded around as the President of the United States placed the ribbon around the blond man's neck. The President smiled, not merely the smile of a politician engaging in formalities, but the smile of a man who has had a burden lifted off of his shoulders. As Graham Aker straightened, President Brian then stepped out of the pre-scripted formalities and saluted the Flag Fighter, one former military man to a current one. Media crews from around the world caught the brief expression of surprise that covered Graham's face before he straightened even more and returned the salute.

This part of the ceremony over, Graham returned to his position in the background, where he proceeded to wait out the ceremony. In the post-ceremony mill, Graham quickly made his way to Dutch, who stood holding the hand of his young son. He looked at Graham sheepishly. "I'm sorry sir, but David here has been waiting for awhile, and wants to see around the capitol before we return. I know you wanted someone to keep the bloodsuckers off your back..."

Graham smiled, and caught the request. "Go spend time with your family, Dutch. You earned it as much as anyone." Dutch smiled, thanked him, and left with his family. Graham was only alone for a second before he was tapped on his shoulder. There was a young women in a modest black dress with short hair, a bit younger then himself by the looks of it.

"Colonel Aker, yes? I'm Kinue Crossroad, from JNN news. You should have been told to expect us?"

"Ah, so your one of the ones who have been tasked to make me look like a hero? Sorry you drew the short straw." Graham nodded to himself. At least she was easier on the eyes then some of the reporters he'd been caught by. Suddenly, though, the name sounded familiar. "Wait, aren't you…"

She nodded. "We've also been doing research into Celestial Being since they started. You may have seen our analysis on Celestial Being's history."

Graham eyed her again. Not just another pretty face. This one had a quick mind, and better yet one that had another view of the Gundams. Billy would never let him live down if he didn't pursue for any outside information from a source like this. "I saw that. Very well done, with good research. My compliments to whoever dug that up."

"Thank you, it wasn't easy."

It took Graham longer than it should have to catch the implication. "That was you?" His mind raced at the new information, and its implications. "Then this isn't just about making me look good. You're planning to pick my brains about this, aren't you?"

"Guilty as charged," she said with a practiced smile. This time, it wasn't just Graham who was trying to look beneath the surface. "You really aren't just a mobile suit jockey, are you? "

Graham chose to accept it as a compliment, and took an exaggerated bow. "I'm sorry if I disappoint. I don't mind, so long as you don't mind if I ask questions back."

"Good. Now, when would you like to sit down?"

Graham brightened as a plan to escape the function earlier than tomorrow came to mind. "Now would work. If you want, you can help me escape here and we can discuss this somewhere more suitable. I know I new restaurant in the area that's supposed to be good."

Kinue eyed him, as if measuring him up. Then, as if agreeing with what she found, she nodded. "I'm paying for myself, of course."

Graham pulled off a remarkable straight-face. "Did I ever offer otherwise?"

She started and looked at him, and then chuckled. "Funny. Shall we go?"

She took his offered arm as the formal rules of the occasion dictated, and the two of them made their way to the exit while more than one reporter and more than one woman looked enviously at Kinue. (More than one tabloid photographer also took a photo of the two, but Graham preferred not to think of where his face would appear tomorrow morning.)

"Just one question now, though," she said as they maneuvered through the doors out of the Union President's residence. "How _did _you defeat that Gundam in one strike? Is that even true?"

"It was rather simple," Graham said, glossing over the pain and terror of that night that he avenged Howard Mason. "I aimed for the cockpit."


	19. Oops

Ever wonder what would happen if Gundam 00 saw common, but believable, mistakes and technical limitations occur?

I did. Three times, in fact. Note, none of these are related.

--

00 Drabble 19

--

"Oops"

--

1: Aiming

Michael gritted his teeth as the Exia's blades destroyed another of his Fangs, and then grinned at the moment of vulnerability he saw. "I have more! Go, fangs!"

Even as they flew to the momentarily defenseless Exia, Michael saw the huge beam approach. Bypassing the fangs and hitting the Exia full on, the massive GN bazooka blast tore through the Gundam like a bullet through wet tissue paper. Pilot and solar furnace both were wiped in the flash of an eye, likely before the Exia's pilot even knew it was coming.

The Thrones turned towards the source of the blast, and saw the Gundam Virtue floating some distance aways. Stunned as they were, none of the Thrones were able to speak before the Virtue's cool-down period had elapsed. The massive suit turned and left without a word, not even responding to Johan's signal flares.

Michael was the first to be able to respond. "What… just happened?" he asked in uncommon bewilderment.

2. Signal Lag

"The battle is proceeding as expected, Sir Coroner," Ribbons said, relaying the events of the battle to Alejandro Coroner. Alejandro sat in the sofa of his hotel suite, listening as his companion told of the battle through his link to Veda.

"And how are the Thrones faring?" Alejandro asked.

"They are surprised and still off guard, now that the Virtue has also appeared. I'm not sure as to how well they will fare as it is, but should the Trial System be activated, they will lose."

"Well we mustn't allow that to happen, can we?" Alejandro replied, an enigmatic smile on his face. "Do what you must."

"Of course," Ribbons answered, turning his attention to the link with Veda. Once the Trial System was activated…

And there it was! Ribbons activated his interface with Celestial Being's supercomputer, plunging into the system data that the Throne's pilot had accessed onboard the Ptolemious earlier. A few prepared overrides, and Veda quickly cut the link to the enforcer system of Celestial Being.

Qucikly, but now soon enough. Even as he finished the commands into Veda, he saw the data feed telling of the battle. Even as the termination signal was leaving Veda's system and heading towards Earth, Ribbons 'saw' the Gundam Nadleeh plunge towards the fallen Thrones. Rather than spear them himself, the Gundam Meister had thrown both of the gundam's beam sabers into the Thrones, spearing them in the cockpit before the Veda's override signal broke the Nadleeh's Trial. Neither Gundam ever had a chance to evade.

"Success, Ribbons?" Alejandro asked, that same smile still on his face.

Ribbons broke into a cold sweat.

3: Hair-trigger

Setsuna's body crumpled to the ground, blood and mixed matter oozing out of what had once been his head. Tieria fell to his knees, shock covering his face, while Lockon stared wide-eyed at his smoking gun, eyes focusing on the hair-trigger that his fingers had gripped just oh so too tightly. He looked, and then he closed his eyes and screamed.


	20. Victory

A short HRL-centric fic. Really just Soma not knowing why to celebrate, and the sad fact that she most likely never will for quite some time. Is my desire to start writing "what if" fics starting to come through yet?

00 drabble 20

"Commander?"

Sergei looked at Lietenant Soma Peries, who stood beside him. "Yes Lieutenant?"

"Why do you allow such blatant lapses in protocol in your sight?"

It was hardly deniable; Sergei sat nearly in the middle of the celebration party that had spontaneously erupted after the Human Reform League special forces unit had returned from their last mission. Evidence of victory was everywhere: service men and women were dancing, women were hanging onto every word of the returning heroes, and the men who went were having a hard time paying for their own drinks. Even the aloof Soma had been offered more than one drink at someone else's expense.

It was also entirely unprofessional, seeing the pride of east Eurasia act like a number of children who had just had their first date. Normally stoic men were shamelessly flirting, few bothered to pay any attention to rank, and only one especially drunken soldier had remembered to salute Sergei. And yet, the famous Russian commander merely sipped his own drink, watching.

"Lieutenant, do you remember the men from the base we saved?"

Soma nodded. "They were cheering us. They were glad to be alive."

Sergei stirred his drink. Local rumor assumed it was vodka, but Sergei never let on that it was actually spring water.

"It was more than joy for being alive, Lieutenant. It was victory. Do you remember me telling you that?"

Trained to be honest, Soma could not lie. She did not want to lie. "Yes, though the connection between victory and a lack of discipline escapes me."

Sergei took a long sip of his drink before replying. "These people too are celebrating, Lieutenant. This has been the first victory after a long and humiliating string of defeats. Since Celestial Being's appearance, each and every encounter of them has been a failure, and once the new models appeared many have lost comrades stationed at bases around the world. The military has borne the brunt of casualties in the course of a losing conflict, and many of these men and women have lost friends and family in those battles. But now that there has been a victory, many are now rejoicing. To them, this struggle and its sacrifices haven't been in vain. Do you understand?"

Soma's expression did not change at all. "No sir. They would have fought on regardless of whether today was a victory or not."

And that was the tragedy of Some Peries, that she _couldn't_ understand. Regardless of how skilled she was in battle, her instructors hadn't bothered to teach her the simplest lessons of humanity. These were the times that tried Sergei's conscious; the times when he confronted what exactly his country would do for its own advantage.

"One day, Lieutenant, you will. Until then, think of it as necessary morale. Tomorrow, they will fight even harder in the knowledge of their success. Tonight, let them do as they please, within reason. There are enough sober pilots to man the machines should Celestial Being for some reason attack again so soon, have no fear."

Soma nodded, but said nothing else. For the rest of the night she sat and observed under the watchful gaze of Sergei, failing to understand.


	21. To Be Gundam

There is no oneshot for episode 21.

But lo and behold, not only did I NOT write a Graham/Union-centered fic, not only did I NOT write a politicos fic, but I wrote a Trinity-centered fic which has rather soft Neena/Setsuna, which one person asked for awhile back. Don't think I could have written this even an episode ago, but 00's habit of killing off unsympathetic characters in sympathetic ways has gotten to me.

Note, Setsuna has gotten a bit harder to write for, since these last couple episodes have gasp developed his character. And Neena is quite likely going to be a bit off character when compared to how she will be shown; I took a "death moderates youthful immaturity" approach, but I feel that while I'm pretty far from Neena's usually bubbly personality, if feels called called for in this fic. I may even continue this idea in Season 2, or something like that.

So, read, enjoy, and tell me how my first serious attempt at soft-romance worked.

* * *

Gundam 00 Episode 22

* * *

It was a reversal of a scene long ago. One stood in the sky approaching divinity, while the other lay on the ground, broken and dejected. Power and nobility radiated from the savior, while anguish engulfed the fallen.

Tears threatening to flood her eyes, the fallen woman struggled to speak past her recent loss and terror. "You… what _are_ you?"

He looked at her with the eyes of a man who had realized his purpose and potential, and said three simple words. "I am Gundam."

That was when she first truly believed.

--

Outside of her god of steel and electronics, Neena cried. Cried for her second brother, shot before he had a chance to fight for their family. Cried for her first brother, who fought and died so that she might live. And cried for herself, who was too weak to help either of them. She cried over the only body that was left, scattered sobs as she struggled for composure.

Footsteps approached, and her savior walked into the barren clearing, approaching her. She could not bring herself to look up, and soon saw him kneeling on the other side of her brother. Never seeing his face, she watched as his hand rose and gently closed her brother's eyes, a courtesy she had never imagined him capable of.

"Do you…" she trailed off, not knowing what dynamic stood between the two of them. "Do you think they're in heaven now?"

"There is no God." Neena looked up sharply, scanning face for any hint of malice. No expression was on his face, but his eyes held no scorn, instead showing a peculiar mix of pity, regret, and a sense of understanding.

"Then where are they now!" She cried, grabbing his arm and pulling him near her. "They were good brothers to me! They wanted to end war!" His expression did not change. He did not reply.

Neena began to cry again. Crying over her brother's corpse, crying into the arm of the man who had once spurned her.

This time, however, he didn't push her away.

--

The camp was set, but far too empty. Setsuna's companion had already gone to sleep, but Neena could not bring herself to sleep. She saw Setsuna sitting on a log, looking into the fire around which dinner had been silently eaten. She could see the graves for her brothers, two markers for one body. She had insisted, and Setsuna had obliged to help her.

She walked to the fire, and sat down beside him. Despite their proximity, they were clearly far apart. They sat, looking into the fire. But Neena did not merely see the flames; she saw the flash that had occurred before her brother Michael had fallen. She saw the brilliant explosion that had signaled the end of Johan. And no matter how many times she averted her gaze, as soon as she looked back the images replayed themselves.

"Hey." She said softly, as if afraid of being heard. "Do you ever stop remembering?" Whether the battle or the voices and faces of her brothers, she did not say. She did not need to.

He was quiet, and she had begun to think he had not heard when he spoke. "No. Never."

"Does it ever hurt less?"

His silence was an answer as to the complexity of those five simple words.

The new silence was more comfortable than the last one. They sat for untold minutes, perhaps hours. Occasionally Setsuna would get up and wander into the woods, leaving a cold space beside her before returning with more wood for the fire. Sometimes she would poke the fire, stirring the embers. Complex thoughts ran through her mind, fighting for contention. One eventually came above the others.

"Why did you save me?"

He heard and answered. "Because that is what it means to be in Celestial Being, to be a Gundam."

"But, the last time we met, you went straight at me, trying to kill me. Why?"

"Because that is what a Gundam does. You were a source of conflict, and I intervened."

She looked at him with the first hint of anger all night. "We are Gundam Meisters too! We were working to end war, just like you!"

He looked at her straight in the eyes. Calling it hatred would be too strong. "Then why did you attack a group of civilians in Spain? What made you think that piloting a Gundam gave you the right to ignore the tenants of Celestial Being?"

She opened her mouth, ready to give words of "they don't matter" or "they weren't working for a new world," but such phrases died at her lips when met with the unflinching gaze of Gundam. An ember of teenage rebellion burned in her eyes, but died in view of the impartial arbiter of Celestial Being. In a moment of maturity brought by the overthrow of her world, she looked away and could only say "that… wasn't right, was it? You're saying I was too caught up in my own beliefs?"

If she had been looking, she might have seen something approaching approval pass through his eyes at that. "Being a Meister means upholding the values of Celestial Being at all times and with all people, never for our own whims and desires." It was a near-rote lesson that Neena could remember from her own days in training.

Neena looked in the fire, thinking over a lesson she had forgotten long ago, wondering in how many places she could have applied it. Setsuna looked at her much like a teacher seeing a pupil work through an especially difficult problem. Neena sat there, chewing on the inside of her cheek, and Setsuna watched as she absorbed his words.

Eventually, Neena relaxed, and suddenly looked much more tired than she had previously. She looked at Setsuna, a slightly more mature view brought by loss and exhaustion in her tired eyes. At the same time, though, she somehow looked lost, more vulnerable for just this moment. "Do you think that if I hadn't done that, that my brothers would be here right now? If I had controlled myself, you had not intervened, would our groups have stuck together against these new enemy suits?"

Setsuna considered it. "I don't know. No one can tell you that. But the past is the past, and no power in this world can change it. You can never take back your sins, no matter how grave. You can only work to atone for them."

"Then I want to be like you." The strength and certainty of her reply was surprising in face of her apparent exhaustion.

"You want to be like Gundam," he corrected.

Neena stood and turned to face him. "I want to be like you," she agreed. She began to walk towards her tent, her hair a brilliant crimson in the firelight. At the other side of the fire, she paused and looked back at Setsuna.

"Just a warning, but I think I've fallen in love with you, Gundam." There was a faint smile and an even fainter blush as she gave a soft V with her fingers, and then she turned back and went into her tent without a look back.

She never saw Setsuna's gaze follow her every step of the way, and even further.


	22. Consequences

Getting close to the end. Only two more after this.

* * *

Gundam 00 23: Consequences

1: Responsibility

There is one person on the Ptolemious who does not shed a tear for Lockon Stratos, and that person is Sumeragi Noriega. It is not because she dislikes him: she has come to appreciate his levity, intelligence, and humanity. It is not because she is not sad either: few onboard regret the loss of any life more than her. It is not because she possessed perfect foresight into the possibility of his death: many things she has foreseen sadden her, even those that do not happen. Rather, it is because she possesses a perfect understanding of the human mind and its methods.

For you see, Sumeragi knows how the mind thinks. Sumeragi knew why only two of her pilots launched, even without being told. Sumeragi knew that Lockon Stratos would feel compelled to escape and take to his mobile suit, just as she knew he would intervene to save his friends. Sumeragi knew Lockon Stratos well enough to know how he would take the fight to the enemy, to attack their command center, just as she knew that the command center would have its own powerful guardian. And Sumeragi knew how Lockon would react, and what his decision would be, even if he failed.

But most importantly, Sumeragi knows that Lockon knew that as well. She knows he willingly and deliberately made each choice, each escalation in a battle that was already won. And she knows he was prepared for what might happen. And that is why, despite her sorrow, she will not cry. She will not dishonor a man who took sole responsibility for his fate, despite the multitude of happy endings available to him.

2: Means and End

"Commander."

The first word of this line of thought was the easiest. The rest was much more difficult.

"After reviewing our latest fight against Celestial Being, I feel it is my duty to bring note of my analysis to you."

Duty was safe. Duty was good. He had lived much of his life under the principle of Duty. Duty to his superiors, duty to his men, and most of all duty to nation. He worked for the good of his people, worked for their safety of flesh and spirit, and that was what drove him now.

"It is my analysis that Celestial Being's shuttlecock pilot has developed a defense against the presence of Lieutenant Soma Peries."

That was true, if impartial. The pilot of the Gundam had not shown the weakness he had consistently shown in previous encounters: while his evasiveness had dropped when the Human Reform League's own supersoldier had attacked, he had not been incapacitated, and had soon unleashed a new damning ability of the Gundam.

"Upon recovering, the Gundam attacked U.N. forces with major effect. While commendable, Lieutenant Peries's efforts to fight the gundam were no more successful than that of any of the other pilots of our special forces."

He was on political ground now, and he knew it. Though far from the police states that terrorized citizens of the East in centuries past, political military figures rarely lived long and happy, especially in such controversial areas. While no tremor or bead of sweat betrayed his feelings to an observer, it took even him a moment to gather his resolve.

"Therefore, having lost the exclusive advantage that saw her assigned into the U.N. taskforce, I suggest that Lieutenant Peries be removed from duty and given a suitable replacement. I request this because it is my belief that, as a soldier, the Lieutenant is too young for this line of duty, and should grow in a healthy social environment before returning to combat duties. I believe this would be in the best interests of the reputation of the League, and in the best interests of the Lieutenant's humanity."

It was out on text, at last. His true thoughts, given form. But, to his shame, he found himself deleting the letter, and deleting the computer's memory of his keystrokes. When he closed his eyes, he could hear Lieutenant Ming's words, calling on him to ensure that they both survived to fight again. When he closed his eyes, he could see the skill and grace with which she had fought in multiple battles and countless simulations, the reactions and precision that impressed the most skilled of aces. When he closed his eyes, he could see the Lieutenant's golden eyes, normally emotionless, judging him for trying to take away her one purpose in life.

But when he opened his eyes, he saw the child soldier bred (not born) for war, never given the chance for humanity. He saw the child he used as a tool against those who fought for ideals. And he saw himself using her for the slightest advantage he could, on the same level of some war-mongering terrorist. And one day, he knew, he would be held responsible.

3: Foresight and Hindsight

President Brian took the note that his aid handed to him. Without even putting on his reading glasses to read what it said, he sighed. "Let me guess. The Human Reform League wants to launch another strike on Celestial Being now, and the Europeans agree if we do? Something about striking while the iron's still hot?"

His aid wanly smiled at the weak joke. "I believe it was another Chinese proverb, but more or less."

"They've got enough of the damn sayings," President Brian muttered. His aid didn't bother asking him to speak up; everyone in the West Wing had been in bad spirits since the last battle; the entire Union space contingent of GN-X mobile suits had been lost in that single battle leaving only the one GN drive on Earth to the Union's name.

"The Human Reform League's foreign minister is arguing at how now is the best time to attack, now that we've apparently killed one of their pilots and destroyed their new equipment. The Europeans are making noises of agreement, but want us to include our last GN drive in the assault."

The President snorted. "Of course they do. They still have more. If we lose our one, we'll be dependent on the charity of the other two for anything."

The consequences of the last battle had reset the balance between the powers once again. While the Union had suffered near total losses in the battle, and the European Union had suffered significant losses of the important GN-X's, the Human Reform League had survived mostly intact. Until new mass produced GN drives rolled out, the Human Reform League would have an immense advantage should the war against Celestial Being end immediately. Also if Celestial Being was destroyed in a battle dominated by Human Reform League troops, the propaganda coup would be enormous.

The aid shook his head. "It's not as bad as that, sir. We're far enough along that we could produce our own GN drives in the near future, provided a war didn't simply start immediately. Besides, the decision to upgrade our Union Flag's with GN drives may prove to be an advantage, once we start production of our own GN drives."

President Brian raised an eyebrow in question. He was getting of the age of forgetting things, after all. His aid helpfully took the hint.

"After all, we already have a number of Flags built, and the infrastructure to make more is well in place. Compare that to the Europeans who just recently built the factories for their Enacts, or the Leage, who doesn't have any generation model that can match the two. Any one of us can try and reinvent the GN-X model as a new mainstay unit, but until we can modified units we already have will be the main forces."

Brian smiled at the reminder of good news after the storm of losses. "Ah yes, I remember. And unlike the other powers, by deciding to set aside a GN drive and modify our existing suit while keeping the GN-X for research we've already gotten a head start in both those fields. Granting the anti-Gundam taskforce leader's request may have turned out to be a blessing in disguise."

His aid smiled at the boss's change of mood. "Exactly, Mr. President." He paused, failing to remember something. "Though I still don't know why someone would be so insistent on piloting the Flag."

His humor temporarily restored, Brian said "I don't remember myself, but we've managed to grab an opportunity out of this latest crisis, so I can forgive peculiar motives." He paused, going over his words in his mind. "I'm sorry, was there a Chinese proverb somewhere in that?"

His aid shrugged. "Probably," he said.


	23. Between Here and There

I've just realized that I never finished my episode 24 drabble, which I had high hopes for. Look for that to be added in the future, as I'm determined to finish my first and only attempt at a fic focusing on the bridge bunnies. Still, the drabble series is completed as is, and it was fun.

As for the last one, it was much better back at the end of Season One. I think my ace-title for Graham is so much cooler than "Flag Phantom," if that's really what his name is now. Plus, scars and injuries from the red GN beams are a much better reason for a mask than nothing, and I'm hoping that Graham is now hideous under the mask.

* * *

00 Drabble 25

Between Here and There

* * *

Faithfulness

"She likes you, you know" said Freeman as the two of them floated in line for chow during their break.

"Huh?" Was Saji's intelligent reply to his friend as he snapped back to reality.

"Anjili, the Indian girl by the third table. No, don't look now!" his British friend exclaimed as Saji started to look over.

"How can you tell?" asked Saji, who could vaguely remember the attractive young graduate from various encounters in the station, which in itself may have been a clue in a station as large as this…

"Madre Dios, it's obvious man. She hardly talks to anyone else, constantly tries to find a seat near you. Jesus, you'd have to be blind not to! As your friend, it's my solemn duty to tell you to go get that."

Saji floated forward in line. "Even if you were right, what makes you think that either she or I am interested like that?"

Freeman sighed melodramatically. "Saji. We are on a space station, the vast majority of us are guys. Women have pick of the litter here, and she hasn't given me the time of day."

"We aren't exactly on Earth, you may have noticed," Saji helpfully pointed out.

Freeman rolled his eyes. "Why thank you. Really though, trying to make engineer clothes look good takes work, and she only does that for you. Now, as to why you wouldn't… I can only think of two reasons: you're engaged, in which you're a fool for not taking advantage of what no one would ever talk about, or you're gay." Freeman paused, and then looked hard at Saji. "Wait, are you? I got nothing against chums like that, believe me, but…"

Saji cut him off with some frantic waving. "No, no! I swear! I'm just not interested right now."

Freeman took another look at Saji, shook his head, and pushed towards a table with his meal. "I don't know who the girl is, but she must be pretty good if she's got you whipped this far from Earth. What goes on in space stays in space."

Saji floated in the cramped meal hall. "Louise…"

* * *

Proposal

"No."

The AEU's top ace would look nothing more like a wounded puppy, so much so that she would have to resist twangs of sympathy as she elaborated.

"Not now, and not like this Patrick."

It was a sign of her mood that she actually called him by his first name. The fool would look confused as always, but he had been close enough to death that she relent this once.

"I am a dedicated soldier, and with the formation of the Earth Federation peace keepers I am soon going to be a very busy woman as well. I don't have the time for this at the moment."

"You knew I was like this after we met," she would remind him. "I'm not some bimbo to throw myself into your arms, to ask you to take care of me."

A sneer would begin to form on her lips as he would try and deny ever wishing that. "After all, half the time it seems like I have to look after you."

True to character, he would begin to protest, before realizing the truth of it. She wouldn't let him regain the initiative. "Not now, and not like this," she would repeat. "When, if, I am ready, if you don't screw up between now and then, _I_ will tell _you_. After all," and here she would give that smirk she had learned he would come back from death for, "I said I would make a man of you, didn't I?"

Now, as he approached her with a square bulge in his coat pocket, ready to kneel, Cathy would just have to not forget what she was supposed to say.

* * *

Leaving

"You are transferring, Commander?"

She stood before him in the privacy of his room, where signs of his recent convalescence remained. She had little expression visible, but Sergei knew the cues that indicated her hurt and distress. She may have well said 'you're leaving me?'

"The orders don't take effect for another month," was all he could say. "Most of the special forces are being reassigned to the Federation Peace Keepers."

"Are you really needed there? Someone is going to have to help rebuild the Special Forces here, after the losses during the final battle."

'Can't you stay?'

"That will be the responsibility of those who remain behind, Lieutenant. Even with a unified army, internal security will be mostly handled by ourselves."

"It would be efficient if the best instructor was retained for training new pilots. Might you convince your superiors of that wisdom?"

'Can't you use your influence to change their minds?'

Sergei shook his head. "I'm sorry, Lieutenant, but my orders are clear. I have to leave."

"I am not proficient at training others."

'I can't, don't want to, do it without you!'

Sergei took a folded letter out of his pocket and handed it to Soma. "You won't have to."

_I knew that and reminded others of that, as well as some favors they owed me._

Soma broke the seal and opened it, her eyes franticly racing through the text. Had she been any other girl, she would have dropped the letter and thrown her arms around Sergei's shoulders and cried tears of joy. As she was Soma Peires, the super soldier who had stood watch over his body for hours only her enhanced body could endure and treated him like fragile china during his recovery and well after it, she came to attention and put enough energy into a salute any drill instructor would have been pleased with.

"Second Lieutenant Soma Peires acknowledges her reassignment to the Earth Federation peace-keeping force, sir!"

Sergei always enjoyed having dry shoulders.

* * *

Rumors

The three of them were nobodies, really. Only one of them had even fought against Celestial Being (he had been shot down in some stretch of the god-damned Gobi Desert), and the other two were fresh out of pilot training from their countries. Still, they had qualified into the new units of GN-drive mobile suits, and that had been worth a spontaneous celebration in one of the many bars in Geneva, where they had been commissioned.

The three of them, despite well on their way to being "plastered," as their Union member insisted on calling it, were still trading stories, hopes, and fears. Hurgan, who was from Poland, told of how his new commander was from the Human Reform League.

"He's has this really large scar, you see," he was saying, "and I have to struggle to not ask how he got it." While everyone knew the Wild Bear of Russia, few knew even a fraction of his war stories. "But there's always this young girl, can't be more than nineteen now, who's always with him. She's a great pilot, I'll admit, but isn't he a bit old for her?"

Ming, from Formosa, let out a tipsy giggle. "My friend, I advise you to never say that in his earshot. They are as close as blood, but no closer. I knew one man from academy, he told me that one man who tried to… how do you say it? Cope a feel? Well, he not beaten by her, because she is in special forces you remember, but then the Commander heard about it and then it got really bad…" He struggled to figure an ending, but couldn't find it. "Papa Bear, we call him. And she is Baby Bear. But either one will kill you if you mess with the other, just like family, see?"

Burwine, from the United States, laughed. "I know I wouldn't do that for my Papa. I'm not silly enough to try and hit on the commander of my squadron, hot as she is. She belongs to one of the other guys in our squadron. What was it again…? Coca-Cola-saur?"

Hurgan was whispering it to himself. "Colasaur? Oh no…" he moaned. "Not him! I feel for you man; that guy has a reputation so bad even I know it. He's a good pilot in practice, no one can deny that, but he's the worst team player I've ever heard of. Tell me how far I'm off: always boasting, new girl every week, shows up late to every meeting, always proclaiming about how great he is?"

Burwine crossed his eyes. "Actually… not much of that. He's full of himself, sure, but it's like he's competing with himself at how to be the best in order to impress the Commander. He's usually one of the earliest people there at meetings, and he's not that bad at leading people into the trouble spots."

Hurgan paused and blinked slowly, alcohol addling his senses. "Huh. Definitely not what I heard. Think that he changed or something?"

Burwine shrugged. "I just know Commander Kathy belts him in line just like any other pilot, so no favoritism there." He looked back at Ming, who had been sipping some Asian brew quietly. "Yo, Ming! Your turn! Who's your commander?"

Ming looked up. "Ah, sorry, what did you say?"

"Your commander, who is it?"

"Ah, Commander Acre. I haven't seen him yet, you see, because my paperwork has been late in getting finalized. I'm currently not assigned to his squadron."

Burwine started and turned instantly sober. "Ming," he said in a serious tone that brooked no disagreement, "do whatever you can to get out of that squadron. You do not want to be under that man."

Ming blinked, and Hurgan checked to see if he was hearing correctly. "Wait, isn't Acre the American ace who fought the Gundams more than any other pilot? Wears a mask now because of wounds in the final battle?" asked the pole.

Burwine nodded darkly. "Iron Mask Acre? Yeah, that's him. But did you know that his subordinates suffer a loss rate of one hundred percent?" The other two gasped. "Pilots under him have a average rate of something like five months before they die or request a transfer out."

"You're joking," said Hurgan. Ming continued to stare.

"No joke," said Burwine. "Trust me, I knew some guys who served under him. He flew them into the ground, literally. The both crashed in the same trial mission for our new MS, and the only excuse that was given was "mechanical failure," even though Iron Mask walked away without a scratch. And you know what's worse?" Neither other man ventured a guess. Burwine paused, and said one word in a low voice loaded with meaning. "Fratricide of a superior officer."

Ming looked near horrified. Hurgan steadied himself. Burwine went on. "He's a good pilot, to be sure, but do you think that he got his position on his own? He initially got promoted to fill his superior's shoes, after said officer conveniently died during an accident during trials for the Union Flag back when that was hot stuff. I had a friend named Joshua, got assigned to Acre's squadron. If you were in the Union back then, you would have heard of Joshua: one of the best pilots in the world. Started talking about Acre, trying to warn some unsuspecting fools you see. But he got overheard by you know who, and in his first mission under Acre, Joshua bit the dust.

"They even say that back when the second wave of Gundams razed his base to the ground and killed one of his oldest subordinates, Graham held off all the pilots from pursuing the Gundams, even though they were using the same GN drives we use now. And that he abandoned his command during the final months of the Celestial Being hunt, coming in at the end of the battle to finish off what the rest of his squad had died in order to weaken. That's how he got his scar. Ming, if you value your life, Do Not Stay. Get out as soon as you can. Or, if you do stay do us all a favor and…"

He would have said more, except a hand landed on his shoulder. As he turned to catch a glimpse of who it was, he turned right into a speeding fist. The stocky American tumbled off the chair onto the floor, while his two companions jumped to their feet. Two pilots faced them, both wearing jackets with stylized Union Flags on them.

"Don't speak about things you don't know anything about," snarled the first one as Burwine stumbled back to his feet.

"The Commander pushes himself harder than any of us, in and out of the mobile suit. Don't speak as if you have a right to judge him. We were the ones who couldn't keep up with him. That's why we left and transferred to other squads, even when he had to carried out of his machine on a stretcher," snapped the other.

Murwine sneered as he gripped a bottle. "I've heard about you Acre groupies. Always defending him, instead of letting him face what he deserves. I've wanted to teach one of you for awhile now, and here are two of you while there are three of us…" Ming and Hurgan blinked at their inclusion, but were stopped when the voice of death spoke.

"Is there a problem here?"

Both parties turned and stopped. Ming and Hurgan stared, and even Murwine was stunned into submission. There was Graham Acre, mask and all. Eyes with bloodshot veins seemed to glare at all, and the mask put the image of a permanent scowl onto already formidable features. His voice was rough, raw, and brooked no disagreement.

The two men snapped to attention and saluted, despite being only in the most casual of uniforms. "Commander!" they barked.

"Attala, Mendev," he acknowledged. "Care to explain why this man was on the floor?"

Neither spoke because Murwine did. "I fell." A pause, and then he rembered. "Sir."

"I see," said Acre, his voice telling exactly what he did see. "You have to be careful about falling in pubs; those black eyes can be rather suspicious." He turned to the two men. "Flag Fighters like you should know better. Come with me." He turned to leave, and they fell in behind him. Before leaving, though, he turned back to the trio.

"Lieutenant Ming" he said. Ming had the strength of mind to jump into attention and salute. "You will report to the squadron headquarters tomorrow for your assignments. The delay in your paperwork has been because of the strict concerns we have of physical fitness in this unit. People with weak hearts and joints are not needed. Come see how we fly, and decide for yourself." He walked out without a glance, and the two other men followed him. Behind them, Hurgan was the first to regain his voice.

"Scary."

"Yes" was all Ming could muster in response.


End file.
